


Lessons in Pain

by TAFKAmayle



Category: Original Work
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-07
Updated: 2020-04-01
Packaged: 2021-03-01 04:27:10
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 25
Words: 40,064
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23049286
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TAFKAmayle/pseuds/TAFKAmayle
Summary: In a universe where you feel your soulmate’s pain, Jeremy is plagued with horrible pain from his soulmate’s injuries. He becomes a cop and moves to Los Santos to chase after the man he believes is his soulmate.TW: This fic contains a Ryan Haywood character.This fic is dedicated to Caliope who came up with the prompt! Thank you for all your support, Caliope!
Comments: 237
Kudos: 209





	1. Chapter 1

“Ah, fuck me!” Jeremy shouted, clutching his side. 

He huffed as the pain rippled through him.

“Nurse Dee, Dooley got another soul trigger,” the teacher muttered into the phone on her desk.

Jeremy wheezed. Was his skin burning? Why was breathing so hard? His rib, it was cracked for sure. Hands were moving him around and he groaned miserably. He was curled into a fetal position, grunting in pain in the nurse’s office as he waited for the pain to stop.

He yelped as a wave of stinging flowed over his side. _Fucking fucker fuck._ Then he got a small amount of relief only for it to come howling back. _Digging._ Something was digging inside him, pulling something out. He felt pain in his hand. _A bite._ He stared at his hand, struggling to breathe before he placed his teeth over the phantom ones and bit back. 

_Take that, asshole,_ he thought bitterly. He’d been tormented by his so called soulmate as soon as he hit puberty. Knives, whips, ropes, fists, chains, mace one time, and now they’d upgraded to bullets. _Asshole._ He’d inflict more pain on himself just to spite the fucker, but then he’d also have to deal with the pain. 

Jeremy had become an expert at not crying at pain, but had also begun swearing like a sailor. The school was less than thrilled about it, but with his not being able to control the pain, they were stuck. So Jeremy basically lived in the nurse’s office, the bed there might as well have had his name on it. And he basically took horse tranquilizers to be able to sleep at night.

He really wished they’d speed up on those soul suppressants. Lord knew scientists were clambering to be the first to discover it. Whoever finally managed was no doubt going to be a very rich person. Jeremy would pay any fucking price to suppress the pains his soulmate made him feel.

Unfortunately, they weren’t developed until he hit 23. By then he’d suffered 15 more gunshots, a branding of some sort, 56 random lacerations, almost getting hanged again, nearly losing a tongue, and extremely rough sex every 1-2 weeks. That at least gave him a bit of a clue as to the identity of his soulmate. 

He was relatively certain it was a man. He never got period pains and he thought the guy got hit in the balls a couple times. He was also apparently a bottom, if Jeremy’s throbbing asshole was anything to go off of. He thought he must have long hair as well, as it got pulled a lot during these encounters. Since his soulmate was having sex from the beginning of their link, he could also assume he was older than Jeremy by several years. All the injuries seemed to hint at a dangerous job, possibly military or police.

Jeremy did _not_ become a police officer in the hopes of finding him. That is not at all why he joined. Okay, it wasn’t the _only_ reason. Jeremy really did want to help people. The suppressants, however, were still in a ridiculous price range he couldn’t afford on a cop’s salary. Committed to being a cop, he had to endure the pain until the price went down or he got promoted.

Jeremy spent entirely too much of his spare time scanning police databases for the guy. He was relatively certain he wasn’t military since he got stabbed a lot. Over time, the amount of injuries decreased as if to suggest he was getting better at his job. Jeremy started searching the precincts with the highest crime rates.

Los Santos, San Andreas was a crime-infested, scum-populated shithole. Truthfully, there were many officers there that could be his soulmate. Most of the older ones had more scar tissue than normal skin at that point. But the older they got, the better they got at not getting shot or stabbed. 

Detective Geoff Ramsey was the one he thought might be the suspect in question. He got shot the same day Jeremy suffered a gunshot for the first time. There were several other injuries that seemed to line up as well. 

Apparently Geoff was known for putting himself in danger often. Jeremy kind of hoped it would be him, he thought he was handsome and seemed to have a strong sense of justice. He seemed like a good man who never gave up. And he had such pretty blue eyes. Jeremy was 26 when he met Geoff Ramsey the first time.

“The fuck are you supposed to be?” Ramsey questioned tiredly.

_Okay, not the best first impression._

“O-Officer Dooley, sir,” Jeremy quickly snapped off, “I just transferred from-“

“I already lost interest,” Ramsey grunted, cutting him off, “You’re my shadow today. Put your shit down and follow me.”

Jeremy hurried to put his box down on the desk and rushed after Ramsey. _Okay, he’s a bit rough on the edges, but he **does** work in Los Santos._ Ramsey led him to a squad car and gave him an address to drive to. Jeremy did so while the other man dozed off. Jeremy’s eyes snapped to the man’s hands where several tattoos were and more were peeking out from his sleeves. He had them on his chest too, Jeremy could just barely see them at the edge of his rumpled button-up. 

“Kid, you’re cute, but eyes on the road please,” Ramsey muttered.

Jeremy blushed, head snapping back forward.

“Can I ogle you when there’s less danger?” Jeremy joked.

“I dunno,” the man answered, “Depends on if you plan to fuck me or just eye-fuck me.”

Jeremy swallowed nervously, glancing at the man.

“And if I said I’d fuck you?” He prompted.

“Then yes, you can ogle me,” Ramsey confirmed, “Careful, red light.”

Jeremy slowed down considerably, nearly slamming the brakes. He was one with the blush now. It wasn’t going anywhere, it was going to be on his face forever. Suddenly, a motorcycle roared around a corner as something exploded. Ramsey sat up straight and flipped on the sirens.

“Follow that bike!” He barked, fumbling for the radio.

Jeremy jerked into action, skidding as he quickly accelerated around the corner. He weaved through traffic, hot on the riders tail.

“Dispatch this is car 13,” Ramsey spoke into the radio, “Ramsey and uh, Dooley, on Jefferson, we’re pursuing the Vagabond.”

“Geoff!” A voice growled from the radio, “Don’t take the fucking rookie with you!”

“I’m not a rookie!” Jeremy protested.

“He says he’s not a rookie,” Geoff relayed, snorting.

“Okay, the _noob_ then!” The voice snapped, “His first day should not be chasing the fucking Vagabond!”

“Be advised, dispatch,” another voice piped up, “Everyone can hear you talking shit. Get off the fucking radio!”

Jeremy screeched around a corner, glancing to the street sign as they turned.

“Fate Avenue?” He muttered, “That’s a bit weird.”

“Fuck, we just turned onto Dead Cop Avenue,” Ramsey growled.

“Get the fuck out of there!”

“Turn off now!”

“What the fuck are you doing?!”

“You’ll get fresh meat killed day one!”

“Pull a uturn!”

“Geoff you stupid fuck!”

Jeremy frowned at the flood of responses. He raised an eyebrow at Ramsey who looked extremely annoyed. 

“Pull off, Dooley,” he finally grumbled.

Jeremy didn’t do that.

“Dooley, pull off!” Ramsey snapped.

Jeremy kept his eyes on the prize, weaving through traffic. There will be no superstition stopping him. First because he was a grown ass man, not a child. Second because he was a child who wanted to impress his crush.

“Dooley, you’re a fucking idiot!” Ramsey hissed at him before turning back to the radio, “So how about a blockade, fellas?”

“Geoff! If you get fresh meat killed on day fucking _one-!”_

“Don’t worry, Jack,” Ramsey interrupted, “Your bet will be safe. The kid’s balls are pretty hefty.”

He threw a grin at Jeremy who grinned back, heart pounding in his chest. He kept on the rider’s tail until he started leading them into more abandoned roads and slowed down to level with Jeremy’s window. Startling blue eyes sparkled at him from behind a black skull mask. He gestured for Jeremy to roll his window down with one gloved hand. Jeremy hit the window button.

“Well, well, well, Ramsey,” the man called over the sounds of engines, “Look at this cute little gift you brought me! It’s not even my birthday!”

“Sorry, bud, Dooley’s too much man for you,” Ramsey threw back, “You couldn’t take him.”

Jeremy was bright red. The rider drifted dangerously close, eyes crinkled up like he was grinning.

“Dooley, hm?” He mused, “Maybe I can’t take you, but I bet you would take me beautifully.”

Jeremy ignored the boner in his pants.

“Why don’t you pull over and we can find out who takes what?” Jeremy suggested brightly.

The rider’s eyes looked down at his lips before back up at his eyes.

“I’d rather be alone for what I want to give you,” he growled lowly.

Jeremy’s throat felt dry and his hands went shaky. This was really doing it for him. Before he could beg or cry or whatever it was his body wanted to do, the man dropped a device on his boner.

“Think fast, pretty boy,” The man taunted, “I’ll see you in your dreams, Dooley!”

He pulled away and Jeremy let out a hissing string of curses.

“Congrats on meeting the Vagabond day fucking one,” Ramsey spoke up dryly, “He’s the most infamous criminal in Los Santos, maybe even San Andreas. And now he’s got his eyes set on you.”

Jeremy felt dizzy as they hastened to take care of the explosive. _Fucking great. Just my luck._


	2. Chapter 2

Ramsey was talking to the first responder while Jeremy frowned at the pavement. It’d been a week now and he was still shadowing Ramsey for some reason. He didn’t understand why. Officers don’t shadow detectives and it certainly wasn’t on-boarding procedure for transferees. 

Jeremy’s back suddenly started aching and he groaned. _Fucking old man soulmate._ He offered Ramsey pain medication when he rejoined him. Ramsey took it with his coffee before frowning.

“How’d you know my back was aching?” He grunted.

“You’re an old man,” Jeremy quipped.

Ramsey flicked his nose.

“Little shit, Dooley,” He grumbled, “Alright, we’ve got a good lead. Apparently these guys disguised themselves as plumbers.”

“Great,” Jeremy muttered, walking to the driver’s side door.

“Hey, after shift, you wanna grab a drink?” Ramsey questioned as they buckled their seat belts.

“This a date?” Jeremy countered, face a bit pink.

“Yes.”

“Then yes.”

~

Ramsey shoved Jeremy up against the door as soon as it closed, one hand holding his face while the other yanked at the buttons on his shirt. Ramsey’s mouth was demanding and rough, his uneven teeth clacking against Jeremy’s. Jeremy felt lucky the guy didn’t shred his gums with how forceful he was. Ramsey pulled back and ripped open his shirt, much to his dismay. 

“Damnit, I have limited uniforms, Ramsey!” He grumbled.

“Shut the hell up, Dooley,” Ramsey fired back, grabbing his waistband.

He dragged Jeremy by the pants into the bedroom and shoved him on the bed. Jeremy shuddered, flush deepening. Ramsey smirked at him.

“Should’ve known you’d like it rough,” He taunted, “Your body begs for it.”

Jeremy bit his lip against the embarrassing moan that tried to launch from his mouth. _It’s your fault! I was fucking 11 when I first felt rough sex, you dickbag!_ Ramsey was yanking off his shoes and then his uniform pants, while leaving his own clothes on. Jeremy huffed in annoyance and grabbed at Ramsey’s shirt.

“Take yours off too,” he growled.

“Slut,” Ramsey laughed.

He shed his button up and pulled his undershirt over his head. Jeremy’s hands rubbed up his torso, feeling his scars. He shivered as he paused on one he was pretty sure he remembered. 

“Got a thing for scars, pretty boy?” Ramsey teased.

“Mm, sure,” Jeremy hummed, “Would you fuck me already?”

“Impatient,” Ramsey scolded, “Can’t you wait for my cock, slut?”

Jeremy moaned, back arching. 

“Fuck no!” He snapped, “Hurry up!”

Ramsey smacked his thigh and Jeremy grunted. 

“Please!” He cried, “Please, sir!”

“That’s better,” Ramsey praised, moving to grab lube and a condom.

He nearly ripped off Jeremy’s underwear and quickly got his fingers lubed up. Jeremy felt tension in his lower back ease as Ramsey started fingering him. Oh, that felt way better in person. He let out a breathy moan. _So much better._ He rocked against his fingers until Ramsey deemed him prepared enough and finally got his cock out. Jeremy’s eyes widened at the size of it. 

Maybe he was just a virgin who didn’t know any better, but wasn’t he a bit wide? He felt a twist of worry in his gut. _Can he... fit?_ He watched as the man rolled a condom on and lubed it up. _That’s gonna hurt for sure._ He lined up and pushed inside him with no hesitation. 

“Fuck!” Jeremy groaned miserably, “Fucking Christ!”

“Don’t try to flatter me, Dooley,” Ramsey grumbled, “Very doubtful this is the biggest dick that’s been in your slutty little ass.”

Jeremy moaned, his body relaxing slightly. _This is the biggest that’s **physically** been in my ass._ He huffed as Ramsey rocked back and forth, helping loosen him up. God, it hurt, but it felt amazing at the same time. Ramsey picked up his pace pretty quickly, probably too quickly, but all it did was make Jeremy’s dick pulse with arousal. Ramsey leaned over him to bite his neck hard and Jeremy whined in pain.

“Damn, you’re tight,” Ramsey groaned, “So young and warm.”

Jeremy blushed deeply, burying his face in Ramsey’s shoulder.

“Sh-Shut up!” He mumbled.

He got a smack to the thigh for that as Ramsey really started fucking him. He drove Jeremy into the bed, rutting into him while letting out primal sorts of growls and moans. Jeremy clawed at his back, trying to hang onto the ground so he didn’t float away. Ramsey’s hand closed around his throbbing cock and pumped twice, Jeremy shrieking as he came all over his belly.

Ramsey thrust quicker a few seconds before he grunted and pulsed. Jeremy shuddered at the feeling. Feeling his pain had never given him the opportunity to directly feel his pleasure. 

Ramsey pulled back, taking the condom off and tossing it before using tissues to clean up Jeremy’s belly. Jeremy made a tiny pleased noise as Ramsey laid next to him, pulling him to his chest. He snuggled up, nuzzling his face against the inked skin there.

“Damn, you’re cute,” Ramsey muttered, “This is gonna become a habit, isn’t it?”

“Better,” Jeremy grumbled.

Ramsey chuckled as Jeremy fell asleep.

~

Jeremy groaned as he woke up. Everything ached. He felt like he’d been dragging Ramsey’s dead weight instead of just having sex with him. Maybe that was normal, he sure as shit didn’t know. _Speaking of, why the hell is the bed cold?_

He rolled out of it, locating his boxers and pulling them on. He used the toilet before going roaming through Ramsey’s place. He followed the sizzling sound and the smell of bacon to the kitchen.

“Morning, Dooley,” Patillo greeted warmly.

Jeremy blinked at the man sitting at Ramsey’s counter. 

“The fuck?” He grunted, “Sergeant Patillo? What’re you doing here?”

“Having breakfast,” Patillo answered cheerfully, “What’re _you_ doing here, Dooley?”

Jeremy went red. 

“Having breakfast after amazing sex,” Ramsey spoke up from the stove, “Give him props on being a great lay.”

Patillo snorted and rolled his eyes as he drank his coffee. Jeremy just stood there a moment before sighing and rubbing his face. _Whatever._

“Where are your mugs, Ramsey?” He grunted, entering the kitchen fully. 

Ramsey pointed to the appropriate cabinet and Jeremy got down a mug, pouring himself coffee. He dumped in what he hoped was a lethal amount of sugar before turning to sit at the counter next to Patillo. Ramsey stopped him, holding out a plate of food. He took it and tried to pull away, but Ramsey held onto it. He grinned at him and tapped his cheek. Jeremy blushed again and leaned over, kissing his cheek. 

“Thank you,” He mumbled as he shuffled away with his plate.

Patillo raised an eyebrow at Ramsey who just grinned wider. He put a plate in front of him too and leaned against the counter as they ate.

“So you always here for breakfast?” Jeremy questioned, between bites.

“Nope, just the ones that effect the rest of us,” Patillo answered, “I’ve been sent in as a diplomat.”

Jeremy squinted at him.

“Because we’re working together?” He guessed, “You’ve come to tell us off?”

“Nope,” Patillo denied, “I’m here to let you know your promotion is under review. You’ll be shadowing Geoff another three weeks and if all goes well, you’ll be promoted to detective.”

“Are you serious?” Jeremy demanded, frowning, “When the fuck was that established?”

“While you were too busy checking me out, no doubt,” Ramsey chimed in.

“Cool,” Jeremy said, continuing to eat.

“I was expecting a little more reaction,” Patillo admitted with a laugh.

“Well, I’m exhausted,” Jeremy grunted, “And my ass fucking hurts so fuck your reactions.”

The other two laughed and Ramsey straightened up, rubbing his lower back. _That’s why I’m so damn sore,_ Jeremy realized. _Ugh._ He finished the breakfast and went to get dressed. He heard Patillo leave as he finished tying up his shoes. Ramsey came into the bedroom as Jeremy made sure he had everything still in his pockets.

“We’re off today,” Ramsey pointed out, “Want to go do something?”

“Like a date?” Jeremy prompted.

“Yes.”

“Then yes,” Jeremy answered, “But I gotta go home and change first.”

Ramsey smiled at him as he got up to leave and followed him to the front door. He kissed him pretty deeply, causing Jeremy’s heart to pound in his chest. They parted, Jeremy waved awkwardly, and then he left for home, grinning widely. 

Maybe it was just the soul link, but Jeremy found himself really liking Ramsey, really enjoying his presence. He wanted to be around him, wanted to date him. He hadn’t really considered that usually soulmates fall in love. He’d been more eager to meet his soulmate and sock him in the guts for all the misery, but now he found he just wanted to be with him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mayle’s writing bingo, mark off “Jeremy’s no longer a virgin”. :D
> 
> @1stworldmutant for like... sadness and cats.


	3. Chapter 3

“All available units,” Patillo’s voice called over the radio, “Vagabond has just taken hostages at the Second Santos Bank.”

Jeremy corrected course as Ramsey hit the sirens. Three weeks of working in LS with Ramsey had taught him two things. 1. Ramsey was a horny old bastard who would fuck Jeremy anywhere. 2. No matter where they were or what they were doing (including each other), Ramsey would always order him to go after the Vagabond. 

He had a vendetta against the man, hated him with a pretty deep passion. Jeremy didn’t know why and he wasn’t sure it was far enough into their relationship to pry into such things. Ramsey hopped out as soon as they arrived on scene and Jeremy drove around the block to find a place to park. All available units was right apparently. Fuck there were a lot of squad cars.

He pulled up next to the mouth of an alley, pausing to gauge the space ahead to see if he could fit. He happened to glance down the alleyway and nearly gasped. The bike. The _Vagabike_ , as he’d taken to calling it. A black and blue Gargoyle with flame details. Jeremy glanced around. It was a hostage situation, so it’d take a bit and he was far enough away from the other squad cars to get noticed fondling the bike. 

He quickly pulled forward and parked, getting out of the car. He glanced around again, debated for two seconds and then jogged to the bike. _Two minutes, that’s all. Then back in the car._ He crouched down and brushed his fingers over the leather seat. His fingers traveled over the blue flame details and down to the exposed metal parts. Jesus, it was a gorgeous bike. He wanted to ride it pretty badly. 

He glanced at the seat. One seater. That was a bit disappointing. He blushed as he thought of hanging onto Vagabond as he zipped through the city. He’d have to get the bike modded to accommodate Jeremy. Jeremy covered his burning face. He really needed to stop with the daydreaming about Vagabond.

“Hello, pretty boy.”

Jeremy froze in surprise. He slowly looked up and over where Vagabond was towering over him. His blue eyes were bright with delight. Jeremy cleared his throat, trying not to think about how he was eye-level with Vagabond’s dick. Vagabond had a gun pointed at him.

“H-hey,” Jeremy squeaked, “You, uh, come here often?”

“That’s a terrible line, Dooley,” Vagabond laughed, “Come on, on your feet, little piglet.”

Jeremy rose slowly, hands going up.

“You like my bike?” Vagabond questioned, sounding amused. 

“Duh,” Jeremy grunted, “It’s a gorgeous bike. I would love to ride it.”

Vagabond stepped closer to him, pressing the gun into his right collarbone.

“I have _never_ been so jealous of my bike before,” he growled.

Jeremy flushed, struggling to maintain eye contact. 

“You been thinking about me, pretty boy?” Vagabond asked, gun pressing hard against Jeremy’s collarbone, “Honest answers only.”

Jeremy cleared his throat, eyes darting away.

“Y-Yes,” he admitted in a tiny voice.

Vagabond leaned closer, pressing his mask to the side of his head. The mouth of it pressed against Jeremy’s ear.

“You think about me when you touch yourself, Dooley?” He whispered, voice rough.

Jeremy tried to swallow a moan.

“S-sometimes,” he mumbled.

“Damn, you’re fuckin cute,” Vagabond groaned, “I wanna play with you so bad.”

Jeremy couldn’t breathe.

“Unfortunately,” Vagabond growled, “Your partner is _real_ keen on fucking me, so I have to go. Soon though, soon I’ll come for you and you’ll cum for me.”

He pressed something into Jeremy’s hand. 

“Hang onto that tight, pretty boy,” he instructed, voice light with amusement, “Or else someone could get hurt.”

He pulled away and hopped on his bike, zipping away before Jeremy could catch his breath. He held tightly to the trigger as he reached for his com.

“Dooley, here,” He called into it, “I’m in the alley to the east of the bank. I got a, um, a 10-79. Vagabond’s just handed me a trigger.”

He wiped sweat off his forehead.

“He went south on Bend,” he added.

“Bomb squad’s en route,” Patillo’s voice called, “Dooley, switch to private channel.”

Jeremy switched over.

“Dooley here,” He muttered, “What can I do for you, Sergeant Patillo?”

“Where the hell is Geoff?!” Patillo demanded.

Jeremy swallowed nervously.

“At the car,” he lied, “Not too far from me. Shall I call him over, sir?”

“Dooley,” Patillo growled, “Don’t fucking lie to me. He separated from you to check the scene, didn’t he?”

Ramsey rounded the corner and rushed towards him.

“No, sir,” Jeremy answered, “He’s right here. We never separate. We’re partners.”

Ramsey was looking him over frantically. After he seemed satisfied he was alright, he kissed him directly on the mouth in front of the bomb squad as they rounded the corner. He never kissed him in front of anyone. Jeremy dropped the com to hold onto the back of Ramsey’s neck. Bomb squad took the trigger off him and their lips parted. Their foreheads stayed pressed together for a long moment.

“I’m sorry,” Ramsey whispered, “I’ll never leave you like that again.”

“Don’t lie,” Jeremy muttered bitterly, “You know you’d drop me like a hot potato if he came roaring by right now.”

Ramsey opened his mouth to argue, but closed it again.

“You’re...right,” he admitted begrudgingly, “I’m sorry. I’ve been after the guy for a decade.”

“Dude, it’s fine,” Jeremy assured him, cutting off more explanations, “I get it. You’ve been chasing him a long time. When you chase someone that long...your vision narrows. It becomes a struggle to see anyone else.”

Ramsey pulled back from him, searching his eyes.

“That sounded like _empathy,_ Dooley,” he commented quietly, “Have you been chasing someone?”

Jeremy puffed out a dry, short laugh and pulled away from him.

“Sorry, Ramsey,” he joked, “That’s part of my tragic backstory. You gotta be in a level three relationship with me to unlock that.”

He started for the squad car, but Ramsey’s hand grabbed his bicep to pull him back.

“Call me Geoff.”

He smiled at Jeremy whose heart fluttered in his chest.

“About time,” he teased, “I’ve been screaming Ramsey for three weeks now.”

Geoff laughed as he let go and they started toward the car.

“Can I call you Jeremy?” He asked, grinning at him.

“Depends, you trying to level up our relationship?” Jeremy countered.

“Yes.”

“Then, yes,” Jeremy answered, “Welcome to level one, Geoff Ramsey. It’s only worse from here.”

“I think I can handle it.”

Jeremy laughed. _Yeah, probably._

~

“Been thinking about me, pretty boy?” Vagabond’s voice whispered, in Jeremy’s memory.

Jeremy rubbed tiredly at his eyes. Two weeks since he saw the man and any time there was a lull for even a moment, he thought of him. It was terrible that he had to start as a detective at the same time as trying to come to terms with his inappropriate thoughts on the man. And dealing with his relationship with Geoff.

It was starting to feel like they were together, despite Geoff’s flat out refusal to call him his “boyfriend”. Someone had called Jeremy his boyfriend and he’d about popped a vein in his forehead. He was so sweet most of the time, but he got very defensive, very quickly with certain things. Like being called Jeremy’s boyfriend or gay or a sissy. Jeremy suddenly had a lightbulb flicker on in his head.

He sat up straighter, glancing towards Geoff at the counter in the coffee shop. _Of course. He’s in his damn forties, he must’ve been mercilessly bullied about being gay at some point in his life._ _Jeremy_ had been bullied for it, even with the more woke climate of their time. He imagined kids were still getting bullied for it. As much progress as had been made, America was still pretty shitty.

Jeremy felt a bit guilty as Geoff made his way over. He really shouldn’t speculate on the guy’s past traumas. Geoff handed over his iced coffee as he sat, sipping his own black coffee. He was looking at Jeremy’s sugar-laden drink with an almost longing look in his eyes. _He doesn’t drink “girly” drinks, because that would be gay._ Jeremy sipped his drink and frowned.

“Hey, taste this for me, will you?” He requested, pushing it towards Geoff, “I think something’s wrong with it.”

Geoff hesitated, glancing around before he put the straw in his mouth and drank. His eyes went comically wide and Jeremy had to bite his tongue to stop his laughter. 

“It tastes fine to me!” Geoff insisted, taking another drink.

“Ah, must’ve already had too much sugar today,” Jeremy grumbled, “Hey, switch me, I still want coffee.”

Now having tasted Whipped Cream-Caramel Dream, Geoff didn’t hesitate to push his black coffee to Jeremy. Jeremy smiled softly as he choked down the bitter coffee. Geoff could be such a kid sometimes. His fondness for the man seemed to grow everyday. 

Geoff’s hand turning the sweaty plastic cup around drew his attention. He looked pretty great with hand tattoos. Not everyone could pull it off, but Geoff’s full sleeves fit him perfectly. Jeremy’s eyes roamed over the symbols on his fingers. _Aren’t finger tattoos like super painful too? Masochist._

Jeremy’s heart stopped working. _Tattoos. Tattoos! Geoff is covered in them!_ Jeremy would’ve felt them, wouldn’t he? He covered his mouth, suddenly feeling sick. _It’s not him. It’s not him!_ Jeremy suddenly leapt from his chair and sprinted out of the place and around a corner. He shakily leaned against a brick wall, his brain hazy.

“Jeremy?! Jeremy, what’s wrong?!” Geoff demanded, touching his shoulder, “Are you sick? What is it?”

Jeremy shook his head, eyes squeezed closed. _It’s not him. It’s just my luck, isn’t it? I’m a fucking moron. How am I only just now thinking of this?!_ Geoff squeezed his shoulder and Jeremy looked up at him.

“Jer, you with me?” He asked gently, “You’re freaking me out, kid.”

“I’m fine,” Jeremy lied, “I think I must’ve ate something bad. Can you drive me home?”

Geoff’s face was soft and filled with care and worry.

“Of course,” he assured him, puttingan arm around his waist, “Come on.”

_This isn’t fair,_ Jeremy thought miserably, _why can’t it be him?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mayle’s writing bingo, mark off “Ryan’s in an alleyway”! It’s basically the free square at this point, tbh. >.>
> 
> @1stworldmutant for more tragic gays.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warnings: kidnapping, cutting

Jeremy scowled at the freezer. The gas station didn’t have Geoff’s coffee thing. He’d have to guess what he’d like. He rubbed his eyes tiredly. _How the hell should I know?! It’s not like I’m his fucking soulmate._

Jeremy was bitter. He knew he was. He felt like an idiot for not realizing sooner. Now he was in a relationship with the guy, one that he was happy with. He had gone and caught feelings and now he was faced with the fact that the guy he liked was not his soulmate.

He wasn’t sure what to do about it. Should he start looking for his soulmate again? Could they really be together if they weren’t soulmates? Would Geoff’s soulmate show up and demand they break up? 

“Hello, pretty boy.”

Jeremy froze and tried to stop the shaking in his knees. He threw a backhanded punch that didn’t land. Vagabond caught his wrist easily. His eyes were crinkled up and sparkling. He was obviously grinning under the mask.

“Come on, baby,” He cooed, “That any way to treat me after I came all this way to see you?”

“Wh-What are you t-talking about??” Jeremy sputtered.

Vagabond didn’t answer, instead just starting to drag Jeremy away. Jeremy panicked, trying to pull his arm from Vagabond’s grip. Of course he was off-duty. He had nothing, he didn’t even have Geoff in the car as backup. Though when Jeremy didn’t show up in thirty minutes with no explanation, he’d probably rush over. Unfortunately, it’d be too late by then. 

Jeremy was jarred from his thoughts as he was slammed over the trunk of a car. The hit to his head dazed him again anyway and his hands were tied behind his back before he could shake it off. His dick was uncomfortably hard and Jeremy blamed his soulmate. If the asshole hadn’t gotten so roughed up all the time, Jeremy wouldn’t crave it the way he did.

As Vagabond went to tie his ankles, Jeremy shifted, trying to squirm away. _Come on, Dooley, don’t just let this happen! You’re a fucking cop, goddamnit!_ He tried to wiggle up the car, away from the tight grip on his ankle, but his trembling legs wouldn’t coordinate properly. _Because you want it,_ a dark voice in his mind whispered.

“No!” He shouted, “Let go of me!”

Vagabond seemed unaffected by his squirming and simply tied his ankles to his wrists. He pulled him off the trunk and Jeremy twisted, trying to move away from him. Vagabond dropped him on the pavement and flipped open the trunk. Jeremy tried to shuffle backwards, but again, Vagabond seemed unaffected. 

“Don’t struggle too much,” he laughed as he got Jeremy in the trunk, “You might hurt yourself.”

“Go fuck yourself you sick fucking freak!” Jeremy spat.

Vagabond’s eyes nearly looked like they were glowing with rage as he slammed the trunk closed.

~

“Take off your shoes,” Vagabond ordered.

Jeremy tried not to shake as he did so. He was a bit freaked out. Vagabond was pissed off at him. He wasn’t flirting any more and Jeremy felt like he was in danger. 

“Shirt,” Vagabond ordered next.

Jeremy pulled his shirt over his head and it honestly felt pretty good to see Vagabond’s gaze drop downward. 

“Sit,” he growled.

Jeremy sat in the chair, trembling as Vagabond strapped him to it. He was crouched in front of him and as he finished, his eyes lingered on Jeremy’s torso. His gloved hand reached toward him and pressed gently to his right pec. Jeremy shuddered and Vagabond’s hand rubbed down him, squeezing lightly.

“Damn, you’re firm,” he muttered, “What a cute little baby bear you are.”

Jeremy blushed, burning with embarrassment, but relaxed a bit at the flirting. This was familiar territory. Vagabond squeezed his pec a bit tighter. 

“Fuck, I want you,” He groaned, “Maybe after...”

He hummed thoughtfully and let go. Jeremy’s body buzzed with shame and arousal. _After what?_ Was this not the main objective? Vagabond moved away and began setting up a camera. Jeremy swallowed nervously. He wasn’t...going to show anyone, was he?

“No worries, pretty boy,” Vagabond mumbled, not looking up, “I’m not recording a porno. I’m providing motivation. We could film one afterwards if you really want to.”

That actually put Jeremy at ease for a moment before he realized what the fuck he’d just said.

“M-motivation?” He stammered.

Vagabond finished angling the camera and looked up at him.

“Yes, I need to acquire some information,” he explained, “Needed a pig to help convince the others to cooperate.”

“Uh, that’s not...” Jeremy started.

_That’s not gonna work._ Patillo and Geoff were the only two that gave a damn about him. They weren’t going to be very motivated by Jeremy’s torture. He was a bit disappointed he hadn’t picked Jeremy up just to make good on his promises. And he was _extremely_ ashamed that he was.

“Now when the little red light turns on,” Vagabond directed, “You say “Hello, I’m Officer Dooley, I’m-“

“Detective,” Jeremy corrected with a glare.

“If you’re a detective, why do you still wear the beat cop uniform?” Vagabond grunted.

Jeremy looked away, face burning.

“I...had to special order the detective uniform,” he muttered bitterly.

Vagabond burst into laughter, clutching his stomach.

“Oh my god, that’s amazing!” He wheezed.

Jeremy huffed, stomach clenching. _Fucking asshole._

“Alright, alright,” Vagabond spoke after regaining his composure, “So I need you to say “Hello, I’m Detective Dooley, I’m being held by the Vagabond. If you want to see my pretty face, undamaged again, you will give him the information he needs.” And then open your mouth wide and stick out your tongue like you wanna catch my cum.”

Jeremy was on fire as the little red light turned on. Shame was apparently his constant state of being now. Vagabond flicked open a switchblade and gave him a pointed look. Jeremy swallowed nervously and looked into the camera.

“H-hello, I’m Detective Dooley,” he recited, “I’m being held by Vagabond. If you want to see my pretty face undamaged again, you will give him the information he needs.”

“Well done, piglet,” Vagabond praised, “Now let’s give them a bit of a show.”

He stepped around the camera and stepped toward him. He stood to one side and trailed the knife over Jeremy’s chest. Jeremy shivered, fists clenching. In two quick movements, Vagabond cut a v over his heart. Jeremy grunted and Vagabond sucked in a sharp gasp. He pulled his shirt away and looked down it.

“What the fuck?” He grumbled.

He suddenly looked back at Jeremy with wide, sharp eyes.

“Y-you!” He sputtered, “Y-you’re the biter?!”

Jeremy frowned at him.

“The fuck are you talking about?” He asked, head spinning from the sudden change in conversation.

Vagabond turned and went to the camera, switching it off then came back to Jeremy. He gripped the back of the chair and leaned in close. He pressed the knife under his chin.

“You little shit!” He growled, “Who’ve you told? Who knows?!”

Jeremy shrank a bit.

“Kn-knows what?” He squeaked, “I-I don’t understand.”

Vagabond’s eyes narrowed. He backed off, looking like he was calculating.

“You bite your left hand when you feel intense pain,” he spoke carefully, “Between your thumb and index. Your top teeth always press down between the index and middle knuckles.”

Jeremy frowned. _How did he-?_ He paled and his eyes widened in realization.

“No,” he whispered, “No, it’s not...it can’t be.”

Vagabond put the knife away and tugged off one of his gloves. He bit down on his left hand, exactly the way Jeremy did any time his soulmate got shot. Jeremy flinched as he felt the bite on his own hand. Tears welled up in his eyes. 

_Why, why did it have to be him?_ All the tears Jeremy had refused to shed over physical pain the last 15 years suddenly flooded from his eyes. It wasn’t just not Geoff, it was Geoff’s archenemy. _Life is so unfair._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no ending statement. 
> 
> @1stworldmutant for even less statements.


	5. Chapter 5

“Ew, why are you doing that?” Vagabond grunted, “I definitely didn’t bite that hard.”

Jeremy’s sobbing only ramped up, despair setting into his bones.

“Stop it!” Vagabond snapped, “I hate that. _Cut it out!”_

“Why y-you?!” Jeremy wailed, “Wh-why’d it have to b-be you?!”

“I didn’t fucking ask for this either!” Vagabond growled, ”I look like someone who wants a fucking pig soulmate?! And you’re Ramsey’s partner! Just my fucking luck!”

He turned away from Jeremy and kicked over a different chair. Jeremy whimpered as it crashed into a wall. Vagabond slammed his fist into the wall as well and Jeremy yelped as pain burst up from his knuckles. Vagabond grunted, going quiet for a long moment before he turned around suddenly and stormed back to tower ominously over Jeremy. 

“You almost got me killed, you little shit,” he hissed.

Jeremy shrank under his fiery gaze.

“I-I d-didn’t!” He cried.

Vagabond gripped his jaw with one hand.

“You did, you little whore!” He growled, “Two months ago, out of nowhere you got your ass fucked by some jerk who didn’t bother being careful about it. I was in the middle of a fucking stealth job and gasped out loud just because your whore ass couldn’t wait for proper prep!”

Jeremy’s despair suddenly switched to white hot anger. 

“You’re one to-to fucking talk!” He screeched, “You got f-fucked when I was graduating! I had to limp across stage t-to accept my fucking diploma!”

“Wow, a real parallel,” Vagabond snorted, “Me almost dying and you graduating, definitely on the same level.”

“Fuck you, asshole!” Jeremy shouted, “The last fifteen years have been fucking hell on me!”

“Hell on _you?!”_ Vagabond fired back, “I had to actually live through the shit! Go fuck yourself, Dooley!”

“Why would I fuck myself when clearly you’re so fucking keen on fucking me?!” Jeremy spat, “You fucked my life, you fucked my relationship, and now you’ve fucked my job! Those tools hate me, you fucking idiot! N-none of them give a fuck if my “pretty” face gets fucked up! They p-placed bets on how long I’d live! None of them longer than three fucking months, so-so fucking kill me and end my fucking torment, you goddamn psycho!”

_ Smack! _

“Fuck!” Vagabond and Jeremy shouted together as the blow to Jeremy’s jaw landed.

“Don’t call me a psycho!” Vagabond screamed at him, rubbing his face where he’d hit Jeremy, “You don’t know shit, stupid pig!”

Jeremy’s crying came back in full force.

“You’re right, I don’t!” He sobbed, “So much of-of me, so much of my fucking life was spent on _you!_ I-I didn’t have time f-for shit else! I b-barely made it through the f-fucking academy! I c-couldn’t keep a fucking relationship! I f-finally thought I-I could k-keep this one! Then you had to f-fucking ruin it! You’ve ruined e-everything for me!”

“You’re in a relationship?!” Vagabond demanded, “With who?!”

“That’s none of your fucking business!” Jeremy shrieked, “Fuck you! You don’t just g-get to come into my life after fifteen fucking years an-and stake your fucking claim! You can kiss my pig ass i-if you think I’m just going to do whatever the fuck you w-want me to, you fucking tool!”

Vagabond turned suddenly and stormed away.

“Fuck you!” Jeremy shouted, leaning forward, “Don’t fucking walk away now you giant fucking cunt! You sowed this fucking field, you fucking cock gobbler! Fucking untie me!”

He strained against the restraints as Vagabond reentered the room.

“Why don’t you fucking fight me, asshole?!” He shouted, “See who can last the fucking longest! I guarantee you, I’ve felt more fucking soul triggers than you have, asshole! Let me-“

Vagabond shoved something in his mouth. Jeremy growled, trying to spit it back out and jerk his head away from Vagabond’s hands. Vagabond yanked something around his head, tightening it at the back of his head. _What the fuck is this?_ Vagabond stepped back and Jeremy again tried to spit out the thing in his mouth. _A ball? A ball gag._ Vagabond gagged him. Jeremy’s eyelashes fluttered as he moaned against the rubber. 

“F-fucking Christ, Dooley,” Vagabond muttered, _“You’re_ the fucking psycho.”

Jeremy glared at him, eyes still watery. _It’s your fault,_ he tired to growl, but it was muffled by the gag. Vagabond stared at him a moment before leaning down over him again. He gripped the back of the chair and pressed the morbid smile of his mask to the gag. Jeremy shuddered as his eyes met Vagabond’s. 

“Damn, you might just be worth it,” Vagabond laughed.

_I’m not, I promise._ Vagabond pulled away, eyes traveling down Jeremy’s torso once again. 

“I bet you take it so good,” he groaned, “You’re so fuckin’ sturdy. I bet I can push you pretty far.”

Jeremy went red as Vagabond’s hands went to his belt. _Is he going to-?? Right in front of me??_ Vagabond unzipped his pants and pulled out his cock. Jeremy choked on a gasp. _Jesus, he’s even bigger than Geoff._ Jeremy watched his hand move up and down on his shaft and he groaned, leaning forward. _Let me do that, I wanna touch it._ His hand reached, straining against the binding. 

“Fuck, look at you,” Vagabond muttered breathlessly, “God, you want my cock so bad, don’t you? Bet you’d do anything for it, wouldn’t you?”

Jeremy wasn’t exactly in a position to disagree. He was strapped to a chair, bleeding and gagged, yet his thighs trembled with how aroused he was. He did want it, he wanted it really badly. And he hated that he did. _It’s your fault I’m like this!_ He thought miserably, fresh tears spilling out. 

“No, don’t start that again,” Vagabond grunted, “You’re gonna make me lose it.”

Jeremy sniffled, really trying to stop it, but he couldn’t. Everything was just too much. He simultaneously wanted and hated Vagabond. Vagabond huffed an annoyed breath and let go of himself, his dick going soft. He covered his face and made a frustrated noise into his hands.

“Damnit!” He barked, “It’s not supposed to be like this!”

Jeremy let out a miserable whimper and Vagabond sighed. He put himself back in his pants and moved to take the camera down. He crouched in front of Jeremy who tried to stop his pathetic whining.

“I’m going out for a bit,” He muttered, “You’re going to wait here and be a good boy so I don’t have to do something you won’t like, understood?”

Jeremy nodded his head. Vagabond’s eyes looked almost gentle for a moment and it startled Jeremy. He reached out and brushed his knuckles over Jeremy’s cheek, through the tears and across the strap of the gag. Jeremy shivered. Vagabond’s eyebrows came together and he stood back up. He took off his jacket and laid it over Jeremy’s torso, tucking the shoulders between him and the chair. Jeremy stared at him wide-eyed as he left.

_What the fuck?_

~

Jeremy was surprised he’d managed to fall asleep when he woke up to a loud slamming noise. He’d embarrassingly nuzzled into Vagabond’s jacket, chasing the faint smell of the man’s cologne and gunpowder. The slamming noise turned out to be Vagabond nearly breaking a door by slamming it shut. He stormed across the room towards Jeremy who flinched at his approach. 

Vagabond didn’t bother saying anything as he unstrapped him from the chair. Jeremy trembled as he pulled him up from it and took his jacket back. Not talking was about as scary as talking very little. Vagabond put his shirt back on him and cuffed his hands. He dropped his shoes in front of him and Jeremy did his best to wobble into them. 

Vagabond tied a blindfold around his eyes again and dragged him from the room. Jeremy felt dread settle in his guts, pressing down on his organs like they were being forcibly pulled downward. He didn’t want to die. He didn’t really want his face sliced up either. There were _many_ pains he wanted inflicted on himself, but the idea that he wouldn’t recognize himself in the mirror horrified him. 

They stopped walking and Jeremy swallowed, his throat dry.

“Will you be good if I let you sit in the front?” Vagabond asked.

Jeremy nodded shakily. He really didn’t want to go back in the trunk. A car door opened and he was ungracefully guided into a seat. He could smell Vagabond and feel his body heat as he leaned over him to put his seatbelt on. Jeremy squirmed a bit, trying to get comfortable with his hands behind his back. The door closed. 

Jeremy didn’t know if he should be scared or not as Vagabond got in and started the car. They drove fora few minutes in terrifying silence. Jeremy tried to swallow down his cowardice. _If I’m going to die, I should really be brave about it. I’m a fucking cop after all._

“You wouldn’t happen to have any savings, would you?” Vagabond grunted.

Jeremy tried to frown around the gag. He shook his head, confused.

“Fucking cop salary,” Vagabond muttered.

He went silent again and Jeremy was starting to worry again. His guts clenched in fear. _He’s going to kill me. I’m gonna fuckin die!_

“Ah, fuck!” Vagabond hissed, “What are you doing?! Fucking ow! Why is your stomach cramping?!”

Jeremy whimpered, shrinking into the car door.

“Oh, right,” Vagabond muttered, “You’re afraid. I’m not going to hurt you. Your pig friends are cooperating. We’re meeting up for the handoff.”

Jeremy’s head jerked towards him in surprise. _Wait, really?!_ His heart squeezed. Geoff must’ve raised hell to get him saved. He blushed a little, his heart going nuts. He felt warm inside. 

“Your boyfriend,” Vagabond spoke up, “He a cop too?”

Jeremy froze. _Boyfriend. He doesn’t like that word. We’re not boyfriends._ Jeremy suddenly wondered if he was the only one Geoff fucked. It’s not as if they’d said that wasn’t okay. Fuck, what Jeremy had been doing with Vagabond would probably be cheating if they had. 

“He doesn’t fuck you hard enough, does he?” Vagabond sneered, “Bet you want more.”

Jeremy nodded without thinking. Vagabond made a smug sort of humming noise. Jeremy wished he could look at him. _Is he... jealous?_ Jeremy’s heart hammered in his chest. _This is fucked, isn’t it? I actually feel good that he’s jealous. This has to be his fault in some way. My emotional state is fucked because he’s been tormenting me for 15 years. I’m not a freak who wants LS’ most wanted._

The car stopped and Vagabond turned it off. He undid their seatbelts and then there was a pause. Jeremy’s mind screamed back and forth between Geoff and Vagabond. It was just the link, wasn’t it? He was weak to Vagabond because of the link. If it wasn’t for the link, he’d never go for him. The link was just making him crazy. _Maybe._

“Listen, Dooley, you can’t tell anyone about us,” Vagabond spoke up.

Jeremy snorted. _No shit, dumbass. Yeah, surprisingly, I’d prefer not to get kidnapped by thugs or fired._

“I’m gonna get suppressants,” Vagabond muttered.

Jeremy’s head jerked back to him.

“Then I can chain you to my bed,” He continued, “And fuck you so hard you can never go back to your little boyfriend.”

Jeremy choked around the gag, sputtering a bit. Great, he was fully fucking erect again. Seemed like that was all he ever was around Vagabond. 

“Well, there’s your partner,” Vagabond grumbled, “Time to go.”

He got Jeremy out and marched him across gravel. Jeremy wondered where they were.

“Jeremy, Jesus, are you okay?” Geoff asked, voice filled with worry.

Jeremy lolled his head to the side as if to say “Seriously?”

“Right, dumb question,” Geoff muttered, “Here Vagabond, the info.”

Jeremy was shuffled forward for the hand off.

“Pleasure as always, Ramsey,” Vagabond mused as he let go of Jeremy, “And of course seeing you is always a pleasure, _Jeremy.”_

Jeremy shuddered at the sound of his name on Vagabond’s lips. Geoff’s hands were on him, untying him as Vagabond’s boots crunched on the gravel. Suddenly overcome with the urge to defy the man, Jeremy shoved his tongue to the side and bit down harshly. The footsteps paused a moment and Jeremy felt a smug sense of satisfaction. 

_Take that, soulmate._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> @1stworldmutant if you really wanna love me forever.


	6. Chapter 6

“Hi, there,” Jeremy greeted, “Detectives Dooley and Ramsey.”

He flashed his badge simultaneously with Geoff. The owner of the drugstore nodded acknowledgement. They looked pretty tired.

“Lee,” they muttered, “I presume you got the basics from the other officer?”

“Yes, were there any more details you wanted to disclose?” Jeremy prompted.

“Not really,” they answered, “But there’s security footage you can look at.”

They followed Lee into the security room. Lee left them there to review the recordings. They found the time of the robbery and Jeremy groaned miserably. 

“You knew, didn’t you?” He grunted.

He watched the Vagabond walking calmly to the front counter. 

“It may have been mentioned,” Geoff admitted quietly.

Jeremy sighed. Of course he was still after the man. Never mind the fact that Jeremy had been kidnapped and hurt by the guy. Never mind that Jeremy didn’t want to see him. _Can’t slow down for even a week, Ramsey? Fuck, I’d take two days at this point._ He’d had three days off and that day was his first day back. He was starting to feel like the third wheel to his not-boyfriend and his unwilling soulmate.

He frowned at the footage. Something was weird about it. He rewound to when Vagabond first entered the store. _He’s not wearing the mask._ He had a hood up and was expertly avoiding cameras, but Jeremy caught the tiniest bit of a stubble-covered jaw. Why wasn’t he wearing the mask if he was there to rob the place? 

Jeremy tracked Vagabond’s figure across the camera monitors. He went to the front counter and said something to the clerk. The clerk’s head jerked up and they put their hands up. Vagabond swayed, nearly taking a step backwards. They recognized each other and were clearly not happy about it. Vagabond pulled a gun and the clerk started gesturing wildly as though they were begging him not to shoot. Jeremy rewound the footage again.

Vagabond’s hand was shaking as he spoke animatedly at the clerk. Jeremy wasn’t surprised that he fired, sinking a bullet in the clerk’s chest. Then Vagabond stood completely still a moment before holstering the gun. He looked towards the clerk, then past them, head ducking to look at the things behind the counter. He was looking for something.

“What the hell is he after?” Geoff grunted, “That kid doesn’t do drugs. Or at least he hasn’t so far.”

“First aid?” Jeremy suggested, watching Vagabond climb over the counter. 

Geoff hummed as he leaned forward to squint at the screen. Vagabond stopped in front of a case and attempted to break it open. Vagabond shot it, getting it to crack, then sent his heavy boot through it, shattering the glass entirely. He reached in to grab his prize and Jeremy’s eyes widened. The box was lime green.

“Soulex?” Geoff muttered, “What does he need soul suppressants for?”

“Presumably he needs to suppress his soul, Geoff,” Jeremy muttered, rolling his eyes, “But I’m more curious about this clerk. You don’t see a lot of flustered Vagabond.”

“Well, they’re fucking dead now,” Geoff grumbled, “Useless.”

Jeremy paused the recording to look at Geoff.

“Dude, that’s fucked up,” He pointed out, “You realize you’re talking about a dead person, right?”

Geoff crossed his arms, going into his defensive stance. Jeremy rolled his eyes.

“I understand you want the guy,” He assured him, gently, “But you’re starting to freak me out. Especially since the handoff.”

Geoff’s face fell and his head dropped. He looked sufficiently scolded, so Jeremy returned to the recording.

“I...I’m sorry,” Geoff muttered, “I shouldn’t have even considered leaving you there.”

Jeremy’s stomach clenched. He remembered how terrifying it’d felt to have Geoff nearly leave him on the gravel, still tied, blindfolded, and gagged. But Geoff wasn’t going to stop chasing the Vagabond just because he was fucking Jeremy.

“You didn’t, that’s what matters,” Jeremy sighed, “But...I would rather spend one lifetime with you, than face all the ages of this world alone.”

He turned back to look at Geoff with a small smile.

“So just bring me along on your hunt next time.”

Geoff gave him a sad smile and nodded. Warmth bloomed in Jeremy’s chest.

~

Jeremy started to look over his shoulder a lot more after the drugstore. Soul suppressants usually started working within a week, so any day now, Vagabond was going to come for him. He tried to work off his nervous, horny energy with Geoff, but the guy was not picking up what Jeremy was putting down. 

Geoff was suddenly quiet and anxious around him, which only worsened Jeremy’s mental state. He was really starting to think Vagabond was right, that he was a psycho. It certainly seemed like he was losing his mind as Geoff retreated from him. 

Finally, Jeremy couldn’t handle it any longer and aggressively initiated it himself. He shoved Geoff up against the wall and mouthed at his lips. Geoff groaned, hips twitching against him. Jeremy bit at his bottom lip, trying to encourage him to act on his desire. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. Instead, Geoff pushed him away.

“J-Jeremy, stop, stop!” He huffed, breathlessly.

Jeremy felt like he’d shot an arrow through his heart.

“Why?” He muttered, “Aren’t we...”

_Together?_ Geoff gave him a pained sort of look. 

“I think it’s better if we don’t,” He mumbled, “I’m not a good boyfriend, Jeremy and I never will be. The more we do this, the more I take from you. I’ve seen me do it, turn someone into an empty shell...  It’s because... my soulmate is dead.”

Jeremy felt a twist of sympathy for him. 

“I’m sorry,” he whispered, “That... that must be horrible.”

Geoff puffed out a short, humorless laugh.

“Yeah, it is,” he confirmed, “The problem is, I try to get from others what I had with her. I try to fill that hole inside me and I hollow them out, because even if I take everything from you, you’ll never be her. I really care about you, Jeremy and I really like having you as my partner. That’s why we can’t do this.”

Jeremy felt something he’d felt a million times: heartbreak. It always came back down to soulmates, links, triggers. He’d had a string of short-lived relationships and they all ended the same: you’re not my soulmate. He sighed, looking down at his hands. 

“Okay, I understand,” he mumbled, “I respect your decision.”

Geoff startled him by hugging him tightly. 

“You’re too young and hot for me anyway,” he teased lightly.

Jeremy blushed a bit as he hugged back.

“Fucking dork,” he laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow me @1stworldmutant to hear about how you can help support me and also hear me complain about everything.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warnings: brief alcohol use, ripping out staples, cutting/blood

Jeremy huffed, drinking deeply from his glass. _Fuck this. Fuck life. Fuck everything._ Geoff fucking broke up with him and the whole precinct was pissed off at him for some reason. No one would talk to him and tell him why. Even Geoff dodged the question when he asked.

_So drown your fucking sorrows in whiskey, you utterly useless loser,_ he thought miserably. He glanced around the bar again. He was too nervous to actually approach anyone, but he really hoped someone would distract him from everything. Preferably with a dick in his ass. This was Vagabond and Geoff’s fault, the sex addicts. Barely a week had past since he last had anything close to sexual contact and he was goddamn jonesin’ for it. 

“Hello, pretty boy.”

Jeremy jerked in surprise, splattering whiskey on his hand.

“Shit!” He hissed, face burning, “Y-you startled me. J-Jesus that’s embarrassing.”

He grabbed some nearby napkins to mop up the mess.

“I’m sorry,” the man apologized, “I just, uh, s-sorry. Should I leave?”

Jeremy looked up at the man and nearly choked. An adorable, nervous looking man was shifting from foot to foot. He looked about Jeremy’s age with dark hair and a light amount of stubble on his jaw. He was taller (big shock there) and thinner than Jeremy, with what appeared to be no muscle definition whatsoever. 

“No, definitely not,” Jeremy answered, grinning, “In fact I think this seat has your name on it.”

He tapped the stool next to him with his foot. The man sat, smiling sheepishly at him, holding his beer bottle in both hands in front of him. _Fuck, he’s cute._

“I’m Jeremy,” Jeremy greeted, “I promise I don’t normally spill alcohol all over myself.”

“Um, I’m Miles,” the man answered, “M-my friend said that opening would, um, work. I’m s-so embarrassed.”

“Well, you got my attention,” Jeremy teased, “And you kept it.”

His eyes swept down his slender frame before flicking back up to meet the man’s. Miles blushed so bright Jeremy could see it even in the low bar lights and he giggled nervously. Jeremy hooked his foot around the stool and dragged it closer to his. Miles’ cute, fluttery laughter was giving him a boner. 

“You’re pretty fucking cute, you know that?” He teased lightly, smirking at him.

“Th-Th-Thank you!” Miles sputtered around his compulsive laughter, “Y-you t-too! I-I mean y-you’re really, er, h-handsome! An-and f-firm.”

His eyes glanced over Jeremy’s shoulders and biceps. He swallowed, Jeremy watching the way his throat bobbed.

“Get a handful of you want,” Jeremy joked, “I work out for a reason, you know.”

Miles hesitated, biting his lip before he put his hand on Jeremy’s bicep. Jeremy flexed and Miles squeezed the firm muscle. He swallowed again, a breathy chuckle puffing out.

“Wow,” he mumbled, “Y-you really are f-firm. I, um, I bet y-you’re strong.”

His eyes darted away from Jeremy, looking past him and his eyes widened. He let go of him and wobbled off the stool in a hurry. Jeremy looked over his shoulder, wondering what spooked the guy and noticed someone death glaring him from across the way.

“S-sorry, I have to go!” Miles blurted, “S-sorry f-for-um, sorry!”

He hurried off to the one death glaring. The glaring one was shorter, with longer, sandy hair. It was pretty obvious they were arguing by the way they were moving. Jeremy turned back around, disappointed and nearly fell off his chair when he found someone in the chair that Miles had occupied. Before the stupid gorgeous face turned the stupid beautiful eyes on him, he recognized him.

“V-Vaga-“ he gasped.

Vagabond slapped a bare hand over his mouth. Jeremy stared with wide eyes. _Fuck. It’s happening._ Vagabond pulled his hand away slowly, putting a finger to his lips. Jeremy trembled.

“Th-the suppressants?” He whispered, “Th-They’re working?”

Vagabond puffed out an annoyed sigh.

“No, they aren’t,” he grumbled, his face twisted up in a scowl, “At least I don’t think they are.”

He gripped Jeremy’s wrist and squeezed tightly, wincing as he felt the pain on his own wrist. He dropped his wrist and sighed, looking away.

“I don’t know what to do,” he admitted, looking like he didn’t want to, “You aren’t supposed to need them as well, but I have no other solution. I can give half of them to you for now.”

Jeremy frowned at him.

“But you stole those,” he argued.

Vagabond grunted, slamming a fist down on the bar.

“That fucking idiot,” he growled, “I had the fucking money. Asshole. I knew you’d fucking bitch about the acquisition. Goddamn pig.”

“Then fucking give up,” Jeremy grunted, scowling, “Fuck some other whore.”

He tossed down a tip for the bartender and got up. He was tired of this lame situation. Vagabond’s hand gripped his forearm. Jeremy grunted, trying to pull his arm away.

“Let go!” He hissed.

“No!” Vagabond hissed back, “I’m not giving up. You’re _mine.”_

Jeremy shuddered, trying to stumble away from him. _Damnit, I got a fucking boner again._ Vagabond got up and dragged him from the place. Jeremy staggered after him, trying to pull his arm free, but not really trying that hard. Vagabond shoved him against a familiar car and smashed his lips on Jeremy’s. Jeremy’s breath caught in his throat as Vagabond’s hands gripped his biceps, pinning him to the car.

“I don’t give up, Dooley,” he snarled, hips pressing against his, “I get what’s mine. _You_ are mine.”

Jeremy shrank a bit from him. _I went cross-country for him. I became a cop because I was looking for him. I crave rough sex because he had it. I curse so much because I felt his pain. Fuck, even my partner on the force is obsessed with him. Everything I am, everything I have is because of him. I really am nothing but his._ Tears welled up in his eyes as he realized he couldn’t even argue against it. Vagabond immediately let go of him.

“No, no! Don’t do that!” He hissed urgently, “Don’t cry! Stop it!”

Jeremy let out a wail and rubbed at his eyes.

“Fuck, d-don’t cry!” Vagabond tried again, hands fluttering around him, “H-how do I make you stop? I-I’m sorry, okay? What do you want?”

He cautiously tapped Jeremy’s shoulder lightly.

“Er, it’s okay?” He offered.

“‘S not!” Jeremy cried, “I-I d-don’t have a-anything! I-it’s not f-fair!”

“That’s...uh, probably n-not true,” Vagabond tried to reassure him, “Don’t y-you have a boyfriend? And you got all your, uh, pig friends too, right?”

_No! I don’t have either of those either!_ Jeremy’s wails ramped up and Vagabond was making panicked placating motions with his hands.

“Jesus, it can get worse?” He grunted, “Fuck, what did I do? I’m sorry?”

Jeremy shuddered with his sobbing, feeling utterly miserable and alone. _Everything fucking sucks! Why is life so unfair?!_ He jumped, startled as Vagabond put a hoodie around his shoulders. He looked up through his tears as Vagabond pulled the jacket around him. His face was filled with worry and despair of his own. He caught Jeremy looking at him and his face twisted in further panic.

“Fuck, please don’t tell me there‘s another level,” he muttered, “You don’t want the ja-?”

Jeremy shoved his face in Vagabond’s chest, gripping his shirt tightly. Vagabond was frozen a moment before he carefully wrapped his arms around him. He held him gently.

“Is this...right?” He whispered, “Th-this is...okay?”

Jeremy was too miserable to confirm, but Vagabond relaxed slightly. His hold became less tense, but more firm, pressing Jeremy to him. He rested his cheek against Jeremy’s head, nose buried in his hair.

“Yeah...yeah, this is right,” he murmured. 

Jeremy agreed, but he couldn’t stop himself from crying long enough to say so. _It is right, even if it is totally fucked._

~

Jeremy rubbed at his sore eyes as he shuffled into the break room with his coffee cup. He’d cried for entirely too long the night before. He didn’t even want to think about the fact Vagabond knew where he lived now because he’d been too tired to drive himself home. Or the fact he’d woken up with his face buried in Vagabond’s hoodie. He was glad it wasn’t the leather one. That would’ve be uncomfortable.

He filled his cup and poured almost enough sugar in to make him forget about his problems. _Almost._ He suddenly felt a shift in his guts. _Uh-oh._ He stood up straighter as the air seemed to leave the room. Things were coming to a head now, apparently. The others were about to reveal their annoyance with him. 

He set his cup down and turned to face them, surprised by how many there were. _Ten._ He had not expected to be cornered by ten of them. This was not good news. He cleared his throat.

“Mornin’ fellas,” he greeted pleasantly, “Something I can help you all with?”

“Sure thing, Dooley,” one of them spoke up, “You can show us that pretty mark Vagabond gave you.”

Jeremy really didn’t want to do that, but he had a feeling things weren’t going to go well for him if he didn’t cooperate. He swallowed nervously as he opened his top buttons and pulled his shirt aside to show them that it was still bandaged. The one who spoke stepped forward and Jeremy struggled not to flinch. He ripped off the bandage without hesitation. 

“Still have the staples, huh?” He commented, moving to the side, “Looks pretty serious guys, think it’s comparable to mine?”

_Ah._ Now Jeremy understood. He got off too easy. They were pissed that he’d barely been touched while some of them hadn’t been so lucky. He wished he could tell them it certainly wasn’t luck. Jeremy winced as the guy pressed his palm over the V. The staples dug into him and he grunted, fire erupting from the wounds. 

“Aw, does that hurt, Dooley?” the man sneered, “Too much for you, pretty boy?”

Jeremy laughed. Not a wise move, but he couldn’t help it. _This is too much pain? Not fucking likely, buddy._ He wheezed and doubled over as he got socked in the gut. He almost laughed again, but managed to bite his tongue. The guy gripped his hair and ripped his head up to look at the others now closer than they were before. Boxing him in. _This is probably bad._

“Tell us, Dooley,” the man growled, “What’d you do for him, huh? You bend over or you get on your knees, little bitch?”

Jeremy shuddered, tossing a glare at the guy.

“Pretty presumptuous, don’t you think?” He grunted, “I could’ve blown him sitting down for all you know.”

He got another punch to the gut. _Yeah, maybe not my greatest use of sarcasm just there._ He hissed as the hand was pressed back over the V. 

“This must be the claiming mark,” someone else spoke up, “This means you’re his bitch now.”

“Nah, stands for virgin,” Jeremy huffed.

He was unsurprised by the punch to his face. Someone ripped out one of his staples and he groaned. Now _that_ did surprise him. Someone else ripped out another one. Then a third person and so on until his eleven staples had been yanked out. Blood was pouring down his chest even worse than it had when he’d first gotten the wounds. He grit his teeth as someone pressed a knife near the bloody mess of flesh that used to be a V. _Tally marks._

They took turns with this as well. Each of them hissing whatever injury they or someone they love endured as they marked it on his skin. The first guy just held him in place by a hand on one arm and the other still gripping his hair. _32 tally marks._

After that was a haze of blows he barely registered as he felt himself drifting off. He supposed their anger wasn’t entirely unfounded, but Jeremy wondered how Vagabond would react. He felt a pain on his hand. A bite, in the usual place. He smiled as he passed out. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mayle’s writing bingo, mark off “emotionally stunted baby Ryan doesn't know how to hug properly”. :D
> 
> @1stworldmutant if you wanna see some tight shit.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning: It’s in the warnings, but I wanna make sure it’s clear: there is rape in this chapter.

Jeremy woke up to his face scraping against a concrete floor. He didn’t have to register the dick in his ass to realize what was happening. He whimpered, hands scrambling to claw at the ground, trying to crawl away. A heavy boot landed on his right hand and he growled in pain. He tried to lift up on his forearms only to get another boot on his face.

_Don’t panic, don’t panic. You’ll just hurt yourself more. Relax, relax, just let it happen._ He sucked in some deep breaths and then he realized two things. 1. Vagabond was biting his hand in a pattern. 2. What Jeremy was experiencing at that moment was the live version of his first soul trigger. Vagabond hadn’t been having rough sex, not that first time at least.

Jeremy squeezed his eyes against tears. _Fifteen fucking years I’ve been blaming him. This has to be karma._ Unfortunately karma fucked up because it was making Vagabond feel it too. Jeremy had to focus on the pattern. _Focus._ Quick bite. Long bite. Long bite. Pause. Four quick bites. Pause. One quick bite. Pause. One quick bite. One long bite. One quick bite. Pause. One quick bite. Long pause. It started over. _Morse code._

Where. 

Vagabond was asking him where he was. Jeremy opened his eyes to glance around. Boiler room. He bit his lip in Morse code back at him. 

Work. 

He repeated it three times before he got a message back.

Hang on. 

Jeremy felt his stomach clench with worry. If Vagabond came for him, he wouldn’t leave the station alive.

Wait.

He repeated it three times.

Why.

Geoff. Call Geoff.

There was radio silence for a while as Jeremy repeated it over and over until he lost count.

Ok.

Jeremy puffed out a relieved sigh. 

Thanks.

He repeated it three times before going quiet again. Vagabond bit his hand, but didn’t say anything else. Jeremy almost cried. It was comforting having him there. Having the link. Like he wasn’t as alone as he felt. 

I’m sorry. 

~

Jeremy laid still on the hospital bed for a few minutes, resisting the urge to sigh.

“You gonna hide in the corner all night?” He finally grumbled, sitting up.

He lifted the head of the bed a bit as Vagabond stepped out of the shadowiest corner of the room. Jeremy winced as he shifted and immediately felt guilty again.

“I’m sorry,” he murmured, “I...it has to be hell for you. I’m sorry.”

Vagabond sat on the edge of his bed, not looking at him.

“You figured it out then?” He muttered, “What happened 15 years ago?”

“Yes,” Jeremy answered, “I’m sorry. I...I blamed you. I shouldn’t...I don’t know what I was thinking.”

“How old were you?” Vagabond asked.

“Eleven.”

Vagabond puffed out a harsh, bitter laugh and buried his face in his hands.

“Of course you didn’t know,” he mumbled miserably, “Eleven years old. No wonder.” 

“My mom suspected,” Jeremy admitted, “She started a journal for me. But we both ended up assuming you were just having rough sex because of how frequently I had similar triggers.”

“Most of it was,” Vagabond confessed, “But not September 7th... and it... happened... before.”

His fist curled in the sheets of the bed. 

“Happened a lot before then,” he muttered.

His eyes were squeezed tightly closed.

“But September 7th 2002 was the last time,” he whispered, “I killed him.”

Jeremy reached out and put his hand over Vagabond’s fist. It relaxed under his hand and Jeremy squeezed gently.

“I’m sorry for what I said,” He murmured.

He leaned over and pressed his forehead against Vagabond’s shoulder blade.

“It’s really not your fault,” Vagabond assured him.

“Yeah, but it still hurt, didn’t it?” Jeremy pointed out.

“A little bit,” Vagabond admitted, sounding tired.

Jeremy squeezed his hand tightly, wishing he could just fix their lives.

“Will you tell me what happened?” Vagabond muttered.

He shifted, turning to look at Jeremy. His hand gently touched the scraped up, swollen half of his face. 

“They...were mad you didn’t hurt me more,” he answered, looking away, “They think I became your bitch. They were very bitter that they’d all gotten way more hurt previously. Presumably after beating me unconscious they wanted to see what saved me from your wrath.”

Vagabond stood up abruptly, turning away from him. 

“Fucking morons,” he growled, “Give me their names.”

“I can’t do that,” Jeremy muttered.

Vagabond whirled on him.

“Why not?!” He demanded tightly.

“If you kill them, you’ll confirm what they said as true,” Jeremy grumbled, “Considering their _suspicion_ of me landed me in the hospital, I’d rather not confirm it.”

Vagabond’s fists clenched and unclenched a moment before he sat back down.

“I’m sorry, it’s my fault,” he apologized, “Of course they all suspect something...I made you call yourself pretty and then I marked you. I’m a fucking idiot.”

He buried his face in his hands.

“I know it’s difficult ‘cause I’m so pretty,” Jeremy deadpanned.

Vagabond looked up at him with an exasperated look. Jeremy grinned, forcing himself not to wince from the pain it caused his face. Vagabond winced instead, rubbing his face.

“Cut that out,” he grumbled.

Jeremy’s grin got wider.

“Fucking ow!” Vagabond hissed.

Jeremy laughed, letting his face relax from the smile. Vagabond’s face softened and he smiled lightly. 

“You’re cute when you laugh,” he commented.

He brushed his hand over Jeremy’s less injured cheek. Jeremy blushed as Vagabond leaned forward and kissed him gently. They parted, but stayed close.

“I know...I know this isn’t ideal,” Jeremy spoke carefully, “But...I do want to try. I’ll take the suppressants.”

Vagabond’s hand found his and he laced his fingers between Jeremy’s. 

“You’re right,” he grumbled, “It’s far from ideal. We’re basically Romeo and Juliet. If anyone finds out...”

“Six people will die?” Jeremy offered dryly, “Including us?”

Vagabond laughed, long and raspy. 

“Yeah, something like that,” he agreed, smiling at him.

He brushed his hand over his cheek again. 

“Never was there a tale of more woe...” he whispered as he leaned back in.

Jeremy’s heart pounded as they kissed. He knew they were in danger, but he found that for the first time he was making a decision for himself. He was choosing Vagabond because he wanted to. Not because they were soulmates, not because Vagabond wanted him to, not because it was expected, but because he wanted to be with him. _His_ choice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> @1stworldmutant for more of me being an asshole.


	9. Chapter 9

Jeremy groaned as he leaned back in his chair. Pretty much everything still ached. But now that he and Vagabond had the soul suppressants working, he could feel his pain on his own. There was something weirdly satisfying to him to feel his own pain. It was his and Vagabond wasn’t suffering for it. Maybe that was masochistic of him or maybe he just thought he deserved it. He honestly wasn’t sure at that point. 

A light hand touched his shoulder and he jumped in surprise, nearly knocking the coffee in Geoff’s other hand right out of it. He winced as he took the offered coffee, glad it was after hours and no one saw that. Geoff was looking at him with the eyes again. _Sympathy. Guilt. Sadness._ He kept apologizing like the incident was his fault and it was starting to infuriate Jeremy.

“Stop looking at me like that,” he growled, “I’m fine. And it couldn’t possibly be your fault. If I have to spend a fourth day with you looking at me like that, I’m going to drown myself in the bathroom.”

“Jeremy...I think it _is_ my fault,” Geoff mumbled, “What... happened in the boiler room anyway.”

Jeremy sighed, putting down the mug to turn to Geoff. _I have so much fucking paperwork to do, will you all just fuck off for once?!_

“Well, tell me how bad your back is fucked up,” he grunted, “From reaching so damn hard to make it your fault.”

“Jer...my soulmate,” Geoff muttered, “Vagabond killed her... but unlike most of his victims, he raped her first. Then he cut her into ribbons and left her to bleed out on a floor.”

“No, he did not,” Jeremy argued immediately, “All of his hits are clean kills. I’ve read all the files.”

“All the confirmed cases,” Geoff pointed out, “The ones we know for sure he committed.”

“Then how do you know that it was him?” Jeremy fired back.

“His mask was there,” Geoff answered.

“And the DNA?” Jeremy prompted, “Why didn’t that confirm it was him?”

“First of all, because he washed it out,” Geoff muttered bitterly, “Secondly because we have none of his DNA to compare it too even if it had been there.”

“So then you have no actual proof,” Jeremy concluded.

Geoff threw him a dark look, but his expression softened as his eyes looked over Jeremy’s bruised face.

“It doesn’t matter,” He mumbled, “What matters is, I think he did it and the rest of the force backs me up. They were trying to make you suffer her pain.”

“They weren’t,” Jeremy dismissed, “What they did had nothing to do with you or her. I know for certain.”

He turned back around to get back to work.

“Why are you so sure?” Geoff huffed.

“Because they put tally marks on me Geoff,” Jeremy mumbled, not looking back at him, “They told me every injury they thought I should pay for. Yours were not on the list. And they were calling me his little bitch, asking how I took his cock. I woke up with a cock in my ass. Two and two make four, not five.”

Geoff was quiet a moment as Jeremy typed.

“Your...soulmate,” Geoff spoke up quietly after several minutes, “The one who called me...are you... together?”

Jeez, that’s a loaded question.

“I mean, he’s my soulmate,” Jeremy answered noncommittally.

“Is...is it serious?” Geoff whispered.

Jeremy felt his heart squeeze. _Don’t do this Geoff. Don’t you fucking dare do this to me._

“Yes, it’s serious,” He answered.

“Oh, okay,” Geoff muttered, “Anyone I know?”

_Hahahaha Hahahaha_

“Nope,” Jeremy lied cheerfully, “I don’t think so anyway.”

“Okay, well, be careful,” Geoff warned, “Just cause he’s your soulmate, doesn’t mean he won’t hurt you.”

_Hahahaha Hahahaha_

~

_Bang bang bang!_

Jeremy blinked awake, rubbing at his eyes. He’d fallen asleep on the couch. _Oops._ He hoisted himself up and shuffled to the door. He opened it to Vagabond.

“Uh, hi?” Jeremy greeted, “A-are you-?”

Vagabond cut him off by pushing into the door and closing it. He locked it up before grabbing Jeremy by the front of his shirt and dragging him into his own bedroom. Well, it was about time. Jeremy had been waiting for weeks. Vagabond sat on the foot of the bed with Jeremy a foot or so away.

“Strip,” He ordered.

Jeremy blushed as his shaking hands attempted to obey. He got his shirt over his head and his pants down before Vagabond said anything else.

“I haven’t even touched you,” he mused, “But your underwear can’t even contain your excitement.”

Jeremy’s burning blush flamed through his whole body as he dropped his boxers as well. He crossed his arms over his stomach, feeling self conscious and ashamed. 

“Give me a little twirl,” Vagabond instructed, voice full of amusement, “Show me your pretty body.”

Jeremy covered his face as he slowly spun in a circle. Vagabond hummed his approval and Jeremy’s dick twitched at the sound. 

“Come here,” Vagabond hummed.

Jeremy dropped his hands to his sides and went towards him, struggling not to stumble like an idiot. He crossed his arms over his stomach again, looking away. 

“Mm, I like when you’re coy,” Vagabond teased, “Acting all shy and embarrassed, but I can see the little whore underneath.”

His hand suddenly gripped Jeremy’s dick and Jeremy gasped then groaned, body leaning towards Vagabond. 

“Look at you,” Vagabond whispered in his ear, “You’re trying to present for me. Pushing your cute little ass out. Unfortunately, I had something else in mind.”

He let go of Jeremy to shuffle backwards. Jeremy watched him shrug off his jacket and undo his pants. Jeremy’s mouth watered as he started to get the picture. 

“Come here,” Vagabond grunted as he pulled his cock out.

Jeremy eagerly hopped onto the bed, crawling towards Vagabond’s crotch. Vagabond put one hand on the back of his head and the other wrapped around his dick. He guided Jeremy towards it and Jeremy opened his mouth immediately. He flushed crimson as drool dropped down his chin. 

Vagabond groaned and pushed faster, getting his cock in Jeremy’s wet mouth. Jeremy pushed forward until he was buried in pubic hair. He moaned, gripping on Vagabond’s jeans. His jaw already ached and his throat burned. 

“Holy shit,” Vagabond huffed, “What a slut.”

Jeremy moaned again and sucked. He pulled back to start bobbing his mouth on Vagabond’s cock. 

“Bet, unh, bet I’m bigger,” Vagabond growled, “Bet y-your little c-cuck boyfriend, unh, is-is tiny.”

Jeremy grunted. _I don’t have a boyfriend any more._ Well, didn’t really have one to begin with. But yes, he was bigger. Vagabond was puffing out some very desperate moans and Jeremy started to worry he wasn’t going to fuck him. He looked up, scowling as much as he could with a dick in his face. Vagabond’s eyes were closed. Jeremy whined, pawing at his shirt. Vagabond opened his eyes and looked down at him with a smirk.

“Slut,” he taunted.

Jeremy blushed, looking away. Vagabond pulled him off by his hair and Jeremy whimpered.

“What do you want?” Vagabond asked, breathless, “Use your words, baby. And be real specific.”

“I-I want...I want you t-to fuck me,” Jeremy mumbled, “Y-you promised!”

Tears welled up in his eyes and Vagabond grunted, letting go of him.

“Baby, I’m gonna, don’t cry,” he hurried to assure him, “I was just teasing you. Come on now. Don’t cry.”

Jeremy huffed, scowling at him.

“Jesus, you’re a brat,” Vagabond grunted, “Spoiled little brat.”

Vagabond grabbed his arms and twisted, pushing Jeremy into the mattress. Jeremy moaned, spreading his legs before needing to be asked. 

“Good boy,” Vagabond cooed as he yanked off one of his gloves, “So eager. You want my cock pretty bad, don’t you?”

He got lube on his fingers and rubbed them together to warm it up.

“Y-Yes, pl-please!” Jeremy whimpered.

Vagabond chuckled at him, leaning down to kiss him as he pushed a finger inside him. Jeremy grunted. _His fingers are bigger too._ His still gloved hand held Jeremy’s face as he mouthed against him. Jeremy held his shirt tightly in both fists, panting around the kissing as he fingered him. He felt dizzy and warm. 

“You ready, baby?” Vagabond groaned, nipping at his lip, “You think you can take it?”

Jeremy nodded enthusiastically and Vagabond chuckled again.

“God, you’re cute,” he laughed, shifting around to get in place, “Can’t wait to see you break.”

He pushed in and Jeremy groaned breathlessly, his body tensing. _Ow ow ow ow ow ow!_ He huffed, trying to force himself to relax as tears leaked out of his eyes. _Ow!_ He whimpered as Vagabond pressed flush against him. 

“I-it hurts!” Jeremy sobbed.

“That was kinda the point,” Vagabond grunted, “T-tell me when you’re ready.”

“No, fuck you!” Jeremy huffed. 

Vagabond smacked his thigh.

“Don’t talk back,” he growled.

Jeremy scowled at him.

“Fine, as you wish,” Vagabond sneered, “If you won’t tell me when you’re ready, then I’ll fuck you whenever, however I want.”

Jeremy shuddered and Vagabond pulled back, snapping forward sharply. Jeremy cried out as Vagabond rutted into him, more tears of pain leaking from his eyes. His body writhed, trying to fuck back against Vagabond’s thrusts, but being mostly unsuccessful. He moaned, gripping at the back of Vagabond’s shirt, trying to hold on. 

Vagabond pulled up for a moment, whipping his shirt off over his head before leaning back down to bite at Jeremy’s neck. His pace barely faltered the entire time, something that might’ve impressed Jeremy if his brain had been able to think anything other than “fuck” “yes” and “Vagabond” which poured out of his mouth over and over again.

Jeremy clawed at his bare back and Vagabond jolted, moaning. Jeremy felt utterly dizzy hearing his sounds. Vagabond reached between them to jerk him off, still breathing heavily in Jeremy’s ear. Jeremy’s eyes were permanently looking at the back of his skull. 

Vagabond choked, his hips stuttering as he came. Jeremy groaned as a few seconds later he came as well. Vagabond twisted, laying down on his side and pulling Jeremy close. They panted for a moment, catching their breath. 

Jeremy snuggled his face into Vagabond’s chest. Vagabond buried his face in Jeremy’s hair and squeezed him tightly to him. He seemed like he was trying to make him stay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And they all lived happily ever after. :D no more angst coming in the next chapter. :D no big plans for ruining the hearts of my readers. :D no tragedy in store for our boys. :D
> 
> @1stworldmutant for no particular reason.


	10. Chapter 10

Jeremy chewed on his bottom lip, glancing around as he tried to decide if this was a breach of privacy. Geoff _had_ told him about it, but hadn’t gone into detail. He might not want Jeremy to know everything, but Jeremy felt the need to prove that Vagabond didn’t do it. He took a deep breath and typed into the file search.

_RAMSEY, VICTIM_

One result. 

_ Homicide _

_ Victim: Ramsey, Katie _

_ Date: September 7th, 2002 _

_ TOD: Between 9 and 10pm _

_ COD: Blood loss from multiple lacerations _

_ Non death-related injuries: Victim was sexually assaulted some time in the half hour before her death _

Jeremy sighed in relief and covered his face with both hands. He knew it wasn’t Vagabond, but it still felt good to confirm it. He dropped his hands, frowning at the report. Wait, so what happened? Had he really been there at some point? If he hadn’t, why was the mask there? Had they been trying to frame Vagabond? He rubbed the cheek that had scraped against the concrete boiler room floor. 

_Had the perp assaulted both of them?_

~

_Bang bang bang!_

_Yes, finally, I can ask him about that night._ He opened the door and Vagabond pushed through, getting his hands on Jeremy immediately. He turned them, shoving Jeremy against the door, subsequently closing it. He mashed his mouth against Jeremy’s as he fumbled to lock the door up behind him. 

“V-vagabond, I-I need to ask-“

“Shut it,” Vagabond growled, “Too long. Need you.”

Jeremy shuddered as Vagabond bit hard enough to bruise him down his neck. He pulled back, grabbing Jeremy’s belt to drag him into his room. He shoved him face down over the edge of the bed and yanked his belt and jeans open. Jeremy trembled, thighs shaking as Vagabond pushed his pants down. He slapped one gloved palm against his ass and Jeremy jolted with a groan. 

“Come on, beg me,” Vagabond coaxed.

He smacked his ass again. Jeremy’s fists gripped the bedspread. _I can’t beg this fucking early! He just started!_

“You gonna be a fucking brat again?” Vagabond grunted.

“I’m not a brat!” Jeremy huffed.

Vagabond smacked his ass on the other cheek, evening out the burning handprints.

“Brat,” Vagabond laughed.

Jeremys snarky reply was cut off by cold liquid dripping down between his ass cheeks. He squeaked out a surprised “eek!” which only made Vagabond laugh more. Jeremy buried his blushing face in the sheets again.

“I hate you!” He grumbled.

“Liar.”

Vagabonds fingers swiped through the lube, rubbing it more firmly over his asshole. Jeremy shuddered, his back dipping to present better. 

“Good boy,” Vagabond cooed.

Jeremy moaned as he pressed a finger inside him. 

“T-tell me how bad y-you want it,” Vagabond panted, “Tell me how good I make you f-feel.”

“Mmf frrm,” Jeremy mumbled around fabric he didn’t realized he’d bitten. 

Vagabond leaned over and yanked the sheet from his mouth.

“Come on, sing for me, pretty boy,” he groaned, slipping a second finger in, “G-give me some of that slutty begging.”

“Fuck you,” Jeremy huffed. 

Vagabond smacked his ass much harder this time.

“You little fucking brat,” he grumbled, “You’re pushing me, huh? Wanna know how hard I’ll go?”

“Wanna know if you can keep up, old man,” Jeremy hissed.

_Fuck, that was a bad idea._ Vagabond spanked his ass until he finally broke down.

“Please!” He sobbed, “Please fuck me! I need you to fuck me!”

“There you are,” Vagabond teased, “Stubborn little brat.”

Jeremy whimpered as he pushed his cock up to his asshole. 

“Y-you didn’t do enough!” Jeremy insisted, “Y-you’re gonna hurt me!”

“Damnit, that’s not a good way to convince me,” Vagabond groaned, “You saying just sounds like “destroy my asshole” to me.”

“Well then fucking do it!” Jeremy snapped.

“Ha, knew you didn’t really mean it!” Vagabond laughed.

He pushed into him and Jeremy lost his breath, groaning miserably as he slid inch after painful inch into him. His eyelids fluttered as his eyes rolled back. _It’s better than last time._ He was sure he’d never felt anything so simultaneously amazing and painful. 

“Baby, breathe,” Vagabond grunted, “You need to breathe.”

Jeremy gasped in a breath and whined out a filthy moan.

“Fucking fuck fuck fuck!” He moaned, “Oh god, I’m so fucking full. Fuck. So much. It hurts so good. It hurts so good. I belong here. This is where I belong. I don’t wanna leave. Stay inside me forever. So good. So full. Fuck fuck fuck!”

Jeremy shook, body spasming, head spinning. He wasn’t sure which way was up any more. Vagabond carefully leaned over him, brushing a hand through his hair.

“Whoa, there,” Vagabond called softly, “Deep breaths, baby. You’re freaking out.”

_“You’re_ freaking out!” Jeremy snapped back.

“I’ll pull out if you don’t relax,” Vagabond warned.

Jeremy whined his annoyance with him but forced himself to focus on breathing. He sucked in a few deep breaths, relaxing his body a part at a time. Hands released the bed spread. Shoulders settled against the mattress. Stomach unclenched. Hips relaxed against Vagabond’s. Legs went limp, letting his toes relax against the floor. 

He grunted, uncomfortable with how his legs were too short to let him stand flat on the floor. It was made worse by the fact he had only socks on, causing him to slip. He shifted, putting his feet on Vagabond’s boots and relaxing his heels against the laces. 

“Fuck, that’s adorable,” Vagabond groaned, “So tiny.”

“N-no!” Jeremy protested, “‘M not! J-just...m-my legs are a l-little short.”

“God you are so fucking cute,” Vagabond grunted, falling over him to brace himself on the bed, “I’m gonna have a fuckin heart attack.”

“‘M not cute,” Jeremy grumbled, burying his face back in the sheets, “Will you fuck me already?!”

“Brat.”

Jeremy wasn’t given time to respond before Vagabond was rocking back and forth. He grunted in pain and moaned in pleasure. The bed shook with how quick and hard Vagabond fucked into him. He was babbling out “fuck yes Vagabond” in different orders again, an embarrassing amount of drool dripping out of his mouth. His eyes were rolled back again and he later thought he must’ve looked like a fucking idiot. Vagabond leaned over him to bite hard on his neck and shoulder.

“S-say Ryan,” He grunted in his ear, “Say “thank you, Ryan” for me.”

“Th-thank you, Ryan,” Jeremy panted out.

“Fuck!” 

Vagabond jerked into him a few more times, pumping his cum deep inside him. Jeremy shuddered and groaned as the hot liquid filled him up. Vagabond panted harshly in his ear as he fumbled a moment to get his hand around him. Jeremy shivered again. 

“Wh-when did you-?” Vagabond muttered breathlessly.

He leaned back as though to check Jeremy had actually cum. Jeremy wished he knew the answer to that question. He was too exhausted to care too much though. Vagabond got tissues to clean him up as he started to leak and helped him crawl up the bed. He pulled his boxers back up and took his jeans off completely. Jeremy dazedly tried to remember what he was supposed to talk to him about.

Vagabond shifted and started pulling off clothes. Down to his shirt and underwear, he slid into bed behind Jeremy and pulled him close. One leg laid over Jeremy’s and one arm hooked around his middle, hand tucked under him like he was trying to hold him there. Jeremy wasn’t sure he could escape if he wanted to, but for some reason that didn’t particularly scare him.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warnings: recalling of past rape and murder

Jeremy woke up to the soft sound of singing. He almost jumped in surprise. He could feel Vagabond still wrapped around him, his warmth flowing through him as his gentle voice sang quietly.

_“Love of mine, someday you will die,_

_But I'll be close behind, I'll follow you into the dark._

_No blinding light or tunnels to gates of white,_

_Just our hands clasped so tight, waiting for the hint of a spark.”_

He laced his fingers through Jeremy’s, squeezing lightly.

_ “If Heaven and Hell decide that they both are satisfied, _

_ Illuminate the "No"s on their Vacancy signs, _

_ If there's no one beside you when your soul embarks, _

_ Then I'll follow-“ _

He abruptly stopped singing and Jeremy almost whined annoyance at that.

“H-how...how long have you been awake?” Vagabond mumbled.

“Since the beginning of the song,” Jeremy admitted.

Vagabond let out a puff of annoyed air and buried his face into the back of Jeremy’s neck. _He’s blushing and embarrassed._ Jeremy grinned. _Adorable._ Jeremy squeezed his hand.

“You want some breakfast?” He offered.

“Only if breakfast is you,” Vagabond answered immediately. 

He nosed up to Jeremy’s ear.

“You were too impatient,” he groaned, “I didn’t get to play with you.”

Jeremy flushed, practically choking on his tongue in surprise.

“Jesus! It’s too early for this!” He hissed, “You’re gonna give me a heart attack.”

“Who’s the old man now?” Vagabond teased.

“I will arrest you,” Jeremy grumbled.

“Can you arrest me if your dick is in my mouth?” Vagabond countered.

“Y-Yes!” Jeremy choked, “Why are you trying to rile me up right now?!”

Vagabond let go of his hand to pull his hips back, pressing his ass against his boner. Jeremy groaned. _Fuck. Just woke up and all ready to go._

“I have a very high libido,” Vagabond grunted, rolling his hips, “I’ve been awake with a boner for half an hour already. So hurry up and get in the mood.”

“How many songs did you sing while you waited?” Jeremy teased.

Vagabond made an annoyed sound and flipped them, putting him on his stomach.

“Brat,” He hissed.

“Not a brat!” Jeremy huffed, _“You’re_ a brat!”

Vagabond laughed as he yanked his boxers down. Jeremy lifted his ass further up, but Vagabond paused. Just as he was about to turn and ask what the fuck was taking so long, Vagabond flipped him onto his back. 

“I’m gonna ride you,” Vagabond informed him in an even tone.

Jeremy blushed and covered his face.

“Wh-Why?!” He demanded, “Why do you say everything like that?!”

Vagabond shifted off the bed and Jeremy dropped his hands to watch him strip off the last of his clothes. _Damn._ The brand, he could see the brand now. It was a V. He reached out and touched it without thinking. Vagabond snatched his wrist and twisted it painfully, his face filled with sudden rage. Jeremy shrank and tears filled his eyes. Vagabond let him go with a panicked look.

“No, no, no!” He shushed, “Don’t cry! I’m sorry, okay? C’mere, I’m sorry!”

He crawled back on the bed and pulled him close. 

“I didn’t mean it, don’t cry,” He mumbled, brushing a hand through his hair, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.”

Jeremy sniffled, rubbing at his eyes.

“Wh-Why’d you g-get mad?” He asked, tearfully, “I-I didn’t mean to make y-you mad.”

Vagabond was quiet a moment, just holding him to his chest. He shifted and buried his nose in Jeremy’s hair.

“My...th-the man who hurt me,” he muttered, “He...put that there.”

“But the brand happened after you killed him?” Jeremy grumbled, confused.

Vagabond sighed, his hand rubbing over Jeremy’s hip.

“I redid it,” he confessed quietly.

Jeremy put his arms around him and squeezed.

“I’m sorry,” he mumbled into his bare chest, “I didn’t mean to bring up painful memories... though actually, I wanted to talk to you about painful memories. You don’t have to though.”

“What...do you want to know?” Vagabond asked, careful and cautious.

Jeremy shifted to look up at him.

“The seventh, the day you killed him,” he answered, “I want to know what happened. Specifically, there was another victim that night.”

Vagabond looked at him sharply. Jeremy wasn’t sure it was a good thing that he didn’t look shocked by the information, just surprised that Jeremy knew it.

“She was sexually assaulted,” he explained, “There was no DNA found at the scene. What was there was the Vagabond mask.”

Vagabond was quiet a moment before he stood up and got dressed. Jeremy followed suit, hoping it would make him feel more comfortable. After they were both dressed, Vagabond sat on the edge of his bed and Jeremy sat behind him. Apparently this was the Vagabond position for sharing difficult information. Jeremy squeezed his hand gently.

“The mask...” he muttered, after some time, “It...wasn’t mine first. It was...his. So was the name.”

His hand rubbed just passed his hip where the brand was. 

“We weren’t in Los Santos long,” he continued, “When he decided he wanted to play a game. He liked to play games with me when he got bored. Games that... humiliated or tortured me. If I wasn’t a good boy and entertained him enough, he would find someone else. That night... he found someone else first.”

He sighed, closing his eyes.

“He said I had to be a good boy,” he whispered, “And get him off or he’d fuck them instead. But my mouth wasn’t enough, I...I wasn’t very good at it. He left me cuffed and I begged him to let me try again. I could hear them screaming.”

He swayed, squeezing Jeremy’s hand.

“And I realized he wanted more,” he pressed on, “He wanted me to...beg for it. Wanted me to humiliate myself to save them. So I did. I begged him to fuck me instead... it got truly disgusting what came out of my mouth before he finally did. Then he uncuffed me. He dragged me over, leaking into my jeans and laughed as he made me check their pulse.”

Jeremy squeezed his hand tightly, pressing his forehead to his shoulder blade. 

“Vagabond, I’m sorry,” he mumbled, “I...thank you for telling me.”

“Don’t...call me that any more,” Vagabond grunted, “Call me by my name.”

“Er, what is it?” Jeremy asked, confused.

Vagabond turned to look at him, scowling.

“You must’ve been pretty fucked up last night,” he grumbled, “It’s Ryan. Call me Ryan.”

“Okay, Ryan,” Jeremy answered brightly, “Do you...let anyone else call you that?”

He felt a bit warm at the idea that he was special to him. Ryan rolled his eyes.

“Ha! No, definitely not,” he snorted, “You think people would be afraid of me if they knew my name was fucking _Ryan?”_

Jeremy laughed, bumping his head against his shoulder.

“I dunno,” he laughed, “I think you’re pretty scary. Like a teddy bear. Grr.”

He giggled as he made a clawing motion with one hand.

“Dooley, I could murder you,” Ryan deadpanned.

“You could,” Jeremy agreed, looking up at him, “But then you’d just follow me into the dark.”

He grinned widely as Ryan narrowed his eyes. 

“I‘m bigger than you,” he grumbled, “I could crush you.”

“You’re not that much bigger!” Jeremy huffed, “I’m not that small!”

He crossed his arms and harrumphed. 

“Oh my god!” Ryan laughed, “You’re so cute!!”

“No!!” Jeremy protested, “I’m a grown man!”

Ryan just laughed more, pulling him onto his lap. He rubbed their noses together and Jeremy went pink.

“You’re bein’ cute,” He mumbled, putting his arms around his neck, “I have work today.”

Ryan pouted at that, pulling him closer.

“Call in sick,” he suggested, “I’m all free today. That’s so rare for me.”

“No one to brutally murder?” Jeremy grunted.

“I mean, I could find someone,” Ryan answered, burying his face in Jeremy’s neck, “There’s always someone who deserves to die.”

Jeremy hummed, feeling a bit queasy. It simultaneously did and didn’t bother him that Ryan was a criminal. He wanted him to stay out of trouble and do the right thing, but he also wasn’t an idiot. Not everyone had the luxury of good parents and a good childhood. And now that he was the Vagabond, it wouldn’t be exactly easy to just stop.

“I’ll take you for ice cream,” Ryan coaxed.

“Fuckin deal!” Jeremy agreed immediately.

Ryan nibbled at his neck.

“Quit, I gotta text Geoff!” Jeremy giggled, “And that tickles!”

He fumbled for his phone on his nightstand while Ryan bit more firmly. His phone was dead. _Oops. What time is it?_

_Ding dong!_

Jeremy jumped at the sound of his doorbell ringing. He frowned. Who was at his door that wasn’t Geoff or Ryan? He plugged in his phone and got off Ryan’s lap.

“Stay here and be quiet!” He hissed.

Ryan laid back on the bed and stuck his tongue out. Jeremy rolled his eyes as he hurried to get the door. His eyebrows went up when he saw it was Jones, Free, and Geoff. They all looked rather grim. 

“Uh, hey, guys,” he greeted, “What’s going on? Did you try to call? My phone died.”

“Jeremy Dooley, you’re under arrest,” Jones spoke up, “On suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder.”

Jeremy’s mouth dropped open in surprise.

“C-conspiracy to commit murder??” He demanded, “Wh-whose murder??”

“Jer, we’ll tell you at the station,” Geoff assured him, “Please just come with us.”

Jeremy blinked dazedly.

“R-right,” He muttered, “Just let me lock my door.”

He flipped the lock and stepped outside. 

“Do you want to cuff me?” He asked, glancing at Jones, “I plan to come quietly, but I understand if you’d feel better that way.”

“If you don’t mind,” Jones answered.

“Jesus, Michael,” Geoff grunted, “Is that really-“

“Geoff, it’s okay,” Jeremy interrupted, “He doesn’t know me that well.”

He turned, putting his hands behind his back. Jones cuffed him and started guiding him to their squad car. Jeremy prayed with everything he had that Ryan would stay in his apartment and not do anything stupid. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :D 
> 
> @1stworldmutant for more sad.


	12. Chapter 12

“Do you understand your rights as I have explained them to you?” Jones asked.

“Yes,” Jeremy answered, trying not to shake.

“Knowing your rights, are you willing to answer questions without an attorney present?” Jones pressed on.

He sounded tired and bored.

“Yes, I am,” Jeremy answered.

Jones raised his eyebrows at him.

“You sure about that?” He tried again, “You’re under no obligation to talk to us just because of your profession.”

Jeremy smiled weakly, his hands shifting where the cuffs had him attached to the table. He wasn’t cooperating because he was a cop, he was cooperating because he didn’t commit the crime.

“I’m sure,” he insisted.

Jones shook his head disapprovingly, but didn’t push the subject. Instead he picked up the folder off the table and slipped out a stack of photos. Jeremy flinched as he turned the first one towards him, his body jerking backwards, trying to get away. He squeezed his hands into fists. _It’s just a picture, dummy!_

“Do you recognize this person?” Jones questioned.

Jeremy nodded his head shakily. Jones flipped to the next, asking again. Jeremy nodded. This continued for a total of ten pictures and Jeremy felt like throwing up.

“Where do you know these people from?” Jones asked, spreading the photos on the table.

Jeremy’s hands were shaking. He was starting to get the picture and he wasn’t doing too good with it.

“Th-they...assaulted me,” he whispered, “They’re all-well, they _were_ cops before the assault.”

“And what happened after the assault?” Jones prompted.

“They were arrested,” Jeremy answered, “They’re awaiting sentencing.”

He looked at the photos and swallowed.

“They’re...they’re dead, aren’t they?” He murmured nervously, “Conspiracy to commit murder... oh god.”

He pressed his shaking hands to his mouth.

“I-I’m gonna be sick!” He choked, turning his head. 

Jones moved quickly, getting a trashcan over to his face as he retched violently. There was barely anything in his guts to puke out, but he just kept throwing up nothing, sobbing miserably as his body spasmed. Door of the interrogation room flew open.

“-if I give a fuck!” Geoff shouted as he stormed into the room.

He was at Jeremy’s side in an instant, crouched next to him. He ran a hand through Jeremy’s hair.

“Shh, baby, you’re okay,” He hushed him, “You’re gonna be fine. I’ve got you. I’m right here.”

Jeremy choked as the retching finally stopped.

“I-I didn’t!” He sobbed, “G-Geoff I w-wouldn’t!”

Geoff hugged him tightly, though awkwardly around how he was cuffed.

“I know, baby, I know,” he assured him, rubbing his back soothingly, “They just have to make sure. I promise they don’t actually think you did it.”

“I-I don’t care about them!” Jeremy cried, “I c-care about you!”

Geoff squeezed him tighter.

“I know you d-didn’t do it,” he choked, “I know you would never do it! I know, Jeremy, it’s not you.”

Jeremy buried his face in Geoff’s chest. _It’s not you._ Jeremy’s tears dried up. _Ryan. He...he killed them. After I told him not to, he did it anyway. Now I’m getting arrested for it._ Geoff pulled back and held his face with both hands.

“Listen, Jer, just tell us,” He pleaded, “I know it was him, your soulmate. Just tell us who he is.”

Jeremy felt phantom aches all over his body. Some were his, some were Ryan’s. Ryan was forced to endure more pain, ten times more, than what Jeremy had. He was forced to endure more pain than even Jeremy had felt through the link. Jeremy thought of the V on Ryan’s skin. Seared in as a reminder of who he was and who had made him that way. Jeremy’s own V seemed to pulse over his heart, reminding him of the same. Reminding him he was lucky.

“No,” he finally whispered, “No, it was me. I confess, I had them killed for what they did to me.”

Geoff’s face pulled into a scowl.

“Don’t protect this guy!” He snapped, “He hurts you! He leaves bruises on you!”

He looked pointedly at Jeremy’s neck where one such bruise was. Jeremy huffed our a bitter laugh.

“Really?” He muttered dryly, _“You’re_ going to judge him for having rough sex with me?”

Geoff went red.

“Th-that’s different!” He sputtered, “He’s your soulmate! He shouldn’t cause you pain!”

“Why?” Jeremy asked softly, “I like pain, Geoff. I’m a masochistic freak. I love getting hurt. He gives me what I crave. And he’s never ashamed of being with me.”

Geoff visibly flinched, like the accusation had slapped him in the face.

“I-I’m not ashamed!” He insisted.

“Sure,” Jeremy muttered tiredly, “Will you fuck off now? I have a confession to sign.”

He fully turned away from Geoff and glanced to Jones who was giving him an intense look. A look like he understood his decision and respected him for it. Geoff squeezed his forearm.

“Please don’t do this,” he whispered, “Jeremy, please, give me a second chance.”

“No, Detective Ramsey,” Jeremy answered stiffly, “I cant fill Katie’s shoes and if she were here, she’d tell you I’m doing the right thing. My soulmate...He tried to save her.”

Jeremy closed his eyes tightly and sighed.

“Maybe you should take another look at her case,” he suggested quietly, “Look at it with unbiased eyes. Try to see what grief and rage have blinded you to.”

Geoff was speechless for a moment while Jones retrieved the paperwork for the confession. He left as Jeremy wrote out his confession and signed it. Jones suddenly gripped his hand tightly. Jeremy looked up in surprise.

“I...how do I get a message to him?” He muttered, “Let me pass along a message for you.”

Jeremy smiled softly.

“Just make sure I’m televised,” he requested, “I’m sure he’ll understand when he sees.”

Jones nodded sharply and left the room. Jeremy looked down at his hands and sighed. It was going to be a hell of a time, but at least Ryan wouldn’t have to suffer for it.

~

“Geoff, it’s okay,” Jeremy interrupted Ramsey, “He doesn’t know me that well.”

Ryan narrowed his eyes at the muffled sound of cuffs clicking over Jeremy’s wrists. A knife was in his hand before he consciously decided to pull one. Jones and Free would be easy to cut down, Ramsey would not. 

He flew into a terrifying sort of calm rage like a contained tornado any time he saw Ryan. He was always there for Ryan’s crimes as well. It was like all the pigs had him on speed dial for when they saw the Vagabond. Ryan still didn’t know why the man hated him so much. He probably killed someone he loved. Ryan had killed a lot of people. Most of which deserved it. _Most._

With Jeremy involved, he couldn’t safely try to fight Ramsey and two more cops. Especially not with Jones holding onto Jeremy. He needed to figure out a way to get to him without accidentally hurting or killing him in the process. 

What the fuck did they think they were doing anyway? Jeremy conspire to murder someone?! Ryan’s mind conjured up the picture of Jeremy’s wide doe eyes filled with tears. His heart squeezed. _If they make him cry, there will be hell to pay._

~

Geoff tapped his fingers on his desk as he stared at the file. Jeremy had accessed it recently, clearly curious about the details. He wasn’t mad about that, what he was mad about was that apparently Jeremy had gotten one look at it and solved the damn thing immediately. Or he’d at least seen something major that Geoff had somehow missed the thousands of times he’d accessed the file. 

_He tried to save her._

So apparently there was a third person at the scene, someone who wasn’t the Vagabond or Katie. Someone who had arrived later? Geoff scrolled through the photos of the scene, swallowing bile as he tried to avoid looking at her body. He frowned at himself.

_Try to see what grief and rage have blinded you to._

He took a deep breath and focused on the pictures of Katie’s mangled corpse. He kept one hand pressed over his mouth as he scrolled with the other. _What did you see, Jeremy?_ Geoff paused, squinting at the blood pooling next to her. _Knee-prints._ Someone had knelt next to her head after the blood had started to congeal. 

He zoomed in on her head. It was turned sideways and a smear of blood was on her neck. Over her pulse point. Someone had checked to see if she was still alive. He scrolled back to the knee prints. So someone else _was_ there. Jeremy’s soulmate. _A witness._

Geoff buried his crying eyes in his hands. After all this fucking time, he got schooled by a fucking kid, 15 years his junior. A certified Bambi in Los Santos and as a detective. The kid was so young and brilliant and fucking _tight_ (he nearly punched himself for that one). Geoff had been looking everywhere but the right place. 

Jeremy had come in and made everything better with his sunshine. He’d rubbed his stupid, beautiful, warm hands all over Geoff’s life and what had Geoff done? Used him, tried to toss him like a Kleenex, and wasn’t there when he needed him. Then he got jealous like some fucking asshole when his soulmate had come into the picture.

_Soulmate._ Geoff needed to find him. For Katie’s case _and_ for Jeremy. Needed him to convince the stubborn brat not to take the fall. He’d called Geoff via the precinct’s system, which meant the recording should be in security. He rushed off to see if it was. _No time to waste, Jeremy’s signing a confession already!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Boom, new perspectives! Bet you weren’t ready for that! :D
> 
> @1stworldmutant for my perspective.


	13. Chapter 13

Geoff slipped the recording in the player and pressed “play” to hear his own voice.

“Detective Ramsey speaking.”

“Ramsey, your partner’s in danger,” an urgent voice spoke immediately.

“Excuse me?”

“Jeremy Dooley, he’s in trouble. He’s being assaulted by other officers.”

“Other officers? Who is this?”

“They have him on some sort of concrete floor in the station. They’ve tortured and beaten him pretty badly. You need to find him.”

“Who the hell are you?? Why should I believe you?”

“I’m his soulmate. I can feel his pain. Ramsey, he needs you.”

“Okay, got it, fine. Concrete floor? Anything else you can tell me?”

“There’s a lot of them: at least 6. You’ll need help.”

“And what’s your name?”

“....James. I have to go, he needs us both.”

“Wait, what-hello?”

Geoff frowned as the recording ended. James wasn’t a lot to go on. It was a stupidly common name. He pressed the rewind and played it again, pacing around. 

“...James. I have to go, he needs us both.”

Geoff rewound it again and turned up the volume. There was a sound in the background. One familiar to Geoff. He strained to hear it as their voices talked over it. Then James paused, hesitating and Geoff heard the noise more clearly. His eyes went wide.

“James.”

He paused the recording. The sound. He knew that sound anywhere. It was Vagabond’s motorcycle. It was a tad muffled, but it was the telltale roar of the Vagabond’s engine. No one else had an engine like that, because no one else wanted to be mistaken for him. It wasn’t moving though, it was idling. _As though the rider had stopped to make a phone call._

Jeremy’s soulmate was the Vagabond. That’s why the “torture” video had cut off so abruptly. They must’ve discovered it when he cut into him. It also explained why “James” hadn’t come to the station. And certainly reinforced the theory that he’d killed Jeremy’s attackers. The guy was pretty ruthless. Hell, Geoff had almost shot them on sight. Though Geoff wasn’t exactly a shining pillar of the community, so he wasn’t the best comparison or normal behavior.

A million questions flooded his brain about Katie’s death. _He tried to save her._ How? How could he try to save her if he was the one who killed her? Was there really a third person after all? Why was Jeremy so sure Vagabond didn’t do it? He was green, sure, but he wasn’t a fucking idiot. 

He shoved all his questions from his mind. Jeremy was what mattered now. He had to save him from the horrible fate that would befall him if he was convicted. He had to stall Michael while he tried to figure out how the hell to get the Vagabond to give himself up.

~

Ryan paced back and forth, phone pressed to his ear. _Come on, come on._

“Yo, V, you there still?” BrownMan’s voice came back on the line.

“Yes, anything?” Ryan answered sharply.

“He’s confessed,” BrownMan answered, “To ten counts of conspiracy to commit murder. And he’s protecting his soulmate, taking the fall.”

Ryan frowned. _Conspiracy to commit murder? When have I ever **conspired** to commit murder?! _

“Apparently they totally deserved it,” BM went on, “Guess they fucked the guy up pretty badly.”

Ryan nearly snapped his phone. Ten counts. Someone killed the fuckers that assaulted Jeremy. Those were his targets that he’d refrained from killing for Jeremy’s sake. Someone had not only killed his targets, they’d put Jeremy in danger as a result. Oh, Ryan was going to kill some people. He was going to kill a lot of people.

“Thanks for the info, BrownMan,” He grunted, “How much this round?”

“Free of charge,” BrownMan answered, “In the name of love, I’d do about anything. I’m sappy like that.”

Ryan hesitated.

“Thanks, Ray,” he finally muttered, “I owe you one.”

“No pr-wait, how do you know my name?!” Ray questioned frantically.

“Gotta go!” Ryan chirped cheerfully, hanging up.

_Okay, so now we find who thinks they can fuck with my soulmate._ His  phone beeped with an alert. He frowned at the security app. _Who the hell?_

~

Geoff felt weird using the spare key. Jeremy had only given it to him because he hated getting up to lock the door behind him when he left in the mornings It felt like a _boyfriend_ thing to do, use a spare key to enter his apartment. But he had very little time. Michael was only willing to give him 24 hours, so Geoff had to hurry.

He found Jeremy’s phone on his nightstand. The kid didn’t have a passcode, which had concerned him the first time Jeremy had him unlock it, but the phone didn’t have anything major on it. He didn’t seem to hide much of anything. Geoff still felt bad for looking through it. 

Especially when he realized only he only had three personal contacts. Dad, Geoff, and Mom. The rest were work numbers. That was depressing. And frustrating. How the hell was Geoff supposed to get a hold of Vagabond? He sighed heavily as he put Jeremy’s phone in his pocket. 

He debated a moment, anxiously pacing before opening the nightstand. _Just a quick peek to see if there’s anything Vagabond related._ There was a soft hoodie, that wouldn’t fit Jeremy, but was definitely not Vagabond’s style, a few bottles of painkillers, some Soulex, and a composition notebook. Geoff almost ignored it, but it said “SOULMATE” on the front in blocky letters. So he pulled it out and flipped it open.

“September 7th, 2002” seemed to scream at him from the top of the first page. He started reading before bothering to question if it was morally correct.

_11:37pm_

_Jeremy had his first soul trigger. He woke up screaming in pain “from his butt”. It didn’t take me long to figure that out. His soulmate, they must’ve been raped or else their partner really didn’t know what they were doing. Oddly he said his face hurt too, but I’m not sure what that could’ve been from. I didn’t even know what to say. Eleven years old. What does a mother tell her eleven year old about this? I suppose tomorrow I’ll just have to explain it all as well as I can._

Geoff snapped the notebook shut, covering his mouth with his free hand. 

_He tried to save her._

Things were becoming clearer. Like a lens focusing on a target, the picture was sharpening. Vagabond _had_ been there, but he wasn’t the perp, he was another vic. Jeremy knew so fervently that Vagabond didn’t do it because he’d felt what Vagabond felt that night. Geoff put the notebook back in the drawer and sat on Jeremy’s bed. He buried his face in his hands. 

_Fifteen years. Fifteen fucking years I’ve been chasing the wrong guy._ Not just the wrong guy, but a guy he should’ve been trying to help. A survivor of that night who had needed someone to help him. All these years...if Geoff hadn’t assumed, could Vagabond, could _James_ have led a more normal life? 

It didn’t matter now, he knew. It was too late for that, for regrets and lamenting. Now all that mattered was Jeremy. Vagabond didn’t kill Katie, but he _had_ killed others and had committed countless other crimes. Most importantly, he committed the one Jeremy had confessed to. He needed to find him. 

_ Click. _

The soft click of the safety flicking seemed to echo in the still room. _Or he can find me, I guess._

“Tell me why I shouldn’t splatter you across the wall, Ramsey,” Vagabond growled, “And it better be good.”

“Because he needs us both,” Geoff answered, dropping his hands, “You know he needs both of us. It’s why you just flicked your safety on, not off.”

He looked up at the man, staring into his eyes. He searched for what it was that made Jeremy care about him so much. Vagabond lowered the gun. His eyes were searching Geoff’s right back.

“It’s you...” He muttered, _“You’re_ the boyfriend.”

Geoff raised his eyebrows.

“Not...exactly,” he grunted, “We were-it doesn’t matter. He’s in trouble. He’s taking the fall for _your_ crime. You have to turn yourself in.”

“It’s not mine,” Vagabond grunted, “I didn’t do it. Some other assfuck did. I’m trying to find out who.”

Geoff sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“We don’t have time for this,” he grumbled, “He’s got 24 hours. Well, closer to 22 now. If it wasn’t you, then who the hell was it?!”

“How the fuck should I goddamn know that?!” Vagabond huffed, “You’re the fucking boyfriend, _you_ should know!”

“Wh-What?!” Geoff shouted, “You’re the soulmate, _you_ should know!”

“Do I really look like I know about his fucking personal life?!” Vagabond argued, “You should know is fucking enemies, you’re his partner for god’s sake!”

Geoff opened his mouth to retort, but they both froze.

“The families!” They blurted together.

Geoff leapt to his feet.

“I’ve got to go tell him it wasn’t you!” He hissed.

“No way, he’ll never believe you,” Vagabond pointed out, “I have to go. You need to focus on finding the loved ones of the ten fuckheads.”

“You’re going straight into the lions den?!” Geoff snorted, “Not a good idea. You’ll get yourself caught! You’re better off trying to shake down the actual killers. See if you can get any of them to talk.”

“Then...” Vagabond hesitated, “Then tell him it wasn’t me and tell him I’d follow him into the dark. Then he’ll know I said it. And try to get that confession shredded.”

Geoff frowned at him in confusion.

“How’d you know he wrote a confession?” He asked, narrowing his eyes suspiciously.

“I know a guy,” Vagabond muttered, “Doesn’t matter. We need to move.”

And move they did, both hauling ass to protect the man they cared about. 


	14. Chapter 14

“Jer, hey, c’mere!” Geoff hissed.

Jeremy cracked an eye open to look at Geoff then closed it again.

“Fuck off, Ramsey,” he grumbled, “I already got the lecture from sarge.”

“It’s not that!” Geoff grunted, “I have information for you.”

Jeremy sighed and hauled himself off the cot. He shuffled across the holding cell and leaned against the bars.

“Better be important,” he muttered.

“Your soulmate, he didn’t do it,” Geoff whispered.

Jeremy frowned at him. 

“I’m serious!” Geoff insisted, “He said to tell you he didn’t do it and that he’d “follow you into the dark”. Whatever the fuck _that_ means.”

Jeremy’s eyes went wide.

“Y-you met with him?” He sputtered, “So you know-“

Geoff put a finger to his lips, then jerked his head towards the security camera pointed at Jeremy’s cell. Jeremy glanced at it and nodded sharply. 

“But if he didn’t do it, who the hell did?!” Jeremy grumbled.

“We think a loved one may have,” Geoff muttered, “Trying to get you landed in prison like you got their loved one.”

“But wouldn’t that mean-“ he stopped abruptly.

_Wouldn’t that mean they killed their loved one? Unless, they didn’t! Unless they faked their death!_ He covered his mouth in surprise.

“One of them is still alive!” He exclaimed, “Geoff, you gotta check their death records. Find the inconsistency. One of them is still alive.”

Geoff rubbed his beard thoughtfully.

“That certainly _seems_ like a viable possibility,” he murmured, “Though that’s certainly a lot of trouble to go through for revenge.”

Jeremy thought back to how angry they’d all been about him being Vagabond’s bitch. No, they weren’t angry about that. They were hurt because they felt he’d gotten off light. They wanted someone to pay for their pain. Except for one of them, snarling in his ear as he fucked him. 

_You like that, whore? Spread your legs for anyone, wouldn’t you? Fucking bitch. You’re mine now, I’m sure Vagabond won’t want you any more._

Jeremy paled, suddenly gripping the bars for support. He hadn’t paid that much attention, he was too focused on contacting Ryan. The words had sorta went in one ear and out the other. The other four that had managed to get in before Geoff burst onto the scene had said less pointed stuff. Mostly just muttering curse words and taunts. But the first one had spewed all sorts of possessive filth in his ear. He was the same one that held him still while the others used him as a punching bag. 

“I-I know wh-which one it is,” he whispered, eyes staring at the wall, unseeing, “H-he’s after me. I...don’t know why. H-he was th-the leader.”

He suddenly felt sick and dizzy. How long had the guy been after him? How long had Jeremy not noticed? _Am I actually the stupidest detective in Los Santos?! How is that even possible when Free is a detective?!_ Jeremy tried to catch his breath. He was freaking out. 

“Jeremy, are you okay?” Geoff called softly, putting his hands over his, “It’s okay. We won’t let him get to you. We’re gonna get you out of here and then-“

“No!” Jeremy frantically interrupted, “No, I-I’m safest here! If I leave...h-he could grab me easily. I need to stay here...I...Geoff, I h-have to rely on you t-to help me.”

He turned wide, teary eyes on Geoff whose heart squeezed painfully. He reached through the bars, wrapping his arms around him and pressed them both to the bars. Jeremy’s arms reached out to grab him too and their faces pressed on opposite sides. 

“D-don’t leave me,” Jeremy cried softly, “Y-you an-and him are all I’ve g-got.”

“Jeremy, I won’t run away from you again,” Geoff promised, “You... were right about Katie’s death. I’m not going to chase him any more. I should’ve stopped years ago, but I just... never had anyone worth stopping for.”

He pulled back enough to put his hands on Jeremy’s face. Jeremy searched his eyes for any sign of lying.

“Jeremy, I’m in love with you,” Geoff confessed quietly, “I know I’m not your one true love. I won’t try to be. But I’ll do my best to be a great second best.”

He smiled crookedly at Jeremy who couldn’t stop the flood of tears. He didn’t know what to say, so he just gripped Geoff’s shirt tighter and cried.

~

Ryan handed off the roll of cash to the guard as he entered the room. The room prisoners used to talk with their attorneys. The prisoner inside it stiffened as he entered. Ryan fixed them with a cold stare as he walked to stand across the table from them. They were shaking. He tilted his head.

“Wh-What do you want?” They questioned, trying to keep their voice even, “Wh-whatever it is, I-I’ll cooperate.”

Reputation certainly was a beautiful thing. Ryan crossed his arms, considering the prisoner a moment. 

“You were paid to kill a cop,” he finally spoke, “Who paid you?”

The prisoner glanced away, swallowing nervously. They seemed to be deciding if Vagabond or the payer was scarier. They finally looked back at him.

“You’re...going to kill him?” He asked carefully.

Ryan’s eyebrows went up. _Interesting._

“That is my end goal,” he confirmed.

“His...name is Billy,” the prisoner muttered, “But he’s not the boss. He’s just the middle man. The guy who pays people. The man at the top is called Pat. Another pig.“

_Another pig, interesting. Perhaps another with a vendetta against Vagabond._ The prisoners hands were shaking fiercely. _They’re terrified of this man._

“I suggest you find yourself in solitary,” Ryan suggested, “Keep yourself out of range of getting stabbed. I’ll ensure you’re released from the hole when the man is dead.”

The prisoner puffed a relieved sigh and nodded.

“Th-Thank you, sir,” he mumbled, “Oh, Billy, he goes by Billy Blitz. You can find him around Davis most days.”

“You’ve been incredibly helpful,” Ryan answered, “You’ll find a gift on your books when you get out of the hole. Now, did the Vagabond ever visit you?”

“No, sir,” the prisoner replied immediately, “I’ve never even seen the man.”

Ryan smiled lightly under the mask. _Smart one this one._ He nodded curtly and left the prison. _Billy Blitz and Pat. Interesting._ There were a lot of crooked cops in LS. Hell, even Ramsey wasn’t totally clean. Truly the only one that came close was Patillo, but even he had taken a bribe when he was younger. Oh and Jeremy of course, though admittedly, Ryan probably ruined that.

But a pig willing to kill ten other pigs, that was something else. Even the crooked ones were mostly pretty loyal to each other. It was Los Santos, they had to stick together. Whoever it was, their goal must be pretty important to them. Revenge, maybe, but without knowing that they were soulmates, how could they be so sure that hurting Jeremy would effect him? And if they did know, how? Jeremy and Ryan had only found out fairly recently. 

He sighed as he mounted his bike. The motive didn’t really matter. They hurt Jeremy, they were trying to hurt him more. He was going to make them unrecognizable.

~

Geoff bounced his leg nervously as he waited on Jeremy’s couch. It felt weird to be waiting to exchange information with the man who was previously his number one enemy. They were practically on the same side now. Except Geoff wanted to kill him so Jeremy would pick him instead. 

He’d sounded pretty cool and accepting earlier, but the truth was he was prepared to physically fight Vagabond over Jeremy. Not that he _would._ Unless Jeremy wanted them too. In which case, he’d give Vagabond a run for his money before he inevitably won. The door opened and Geoff shot to his feet, pushing his thoughts aside.

“Ramsey, I’ve got a name!” Vagabond called as he slammed the door shut.

“Me too!” Geoff answered, “I guess Jeremy has some sort of stalker.”

Vagabond cut him a sharp look.

“Detective Fitzpatrick,” Geoff explained, holding up a picture, “He was the ringleader of the fucks who hurt Jer. He’s about as crooked as it gets. But he’s managed to cover his ass previously and he’s got friends all over. His death was totally faked, the record didn’t even try.”

Vagabond took the picture, staring at it a moment. His eyes looked frustrated and pissed behind belief. Suddenly his foot swung out, kicking Jeremy’s coffee table. Geoff jumped in surprise. Vagabond turned away from him, one hand going to his mask, the other squeezed into a fist, crumpling the picture. Geoff felt the bizarre urge to comfort him.

“It’s not your fault, man,” Geoff muttered, “No one noticed, not even Jeremy.”

Vagabond rounded on him, suddenly grabbing his coat and slamming him into the wall.

“Ramsey, tell me what the fuck made you think I wanted your fucking opinion?” He snarled.

“You looked like a fucking kicked puppy!” Geoff snapped back, “I was trying to be nice!”

“I definitely don’t need pity from a pathetic micro-dick,” Vagabond sneered, “Especially one who can’t fuck a _masochist_ hard enough.”

_Did...Jeremy say that about me?_ Geoff went red. _No way in hell would he say that._

“Don’t push your own insecurities onto me!” He hissed.

“Don’t trust me,” Vagabond laughed, “Trust Jeremy. He told me himself.“

Geoff’s face blushed deeper. _No, no fucking way! He probably made him say it._ Geoff looked away, swallowing thickly. _Damnit. I really am second best, aren’t I?_ He sighed.

“Whatever, it doesn’t matter,” he muttered, “We need to find this asshole before he gets to Jer. He’s in holding right now, but I dunno how long we can stall.”

Vagabond released him with an annoyed grunt.

“You didn’t destroy the fucking confession like I told you?!” He huffed.

“I did!” Geoff snapped, jerking his head back, “It’s shredded, but until we find Fitz-fuckhead, Jeremy’s still a suspect!”

Vagabond let out a sigh and rolled his eyes as he checked his watch. 

“What’re we at 18 hours?” He grumbled.

“Yeah, did you actually get a lead?” Geoff snarked, “Or were you just fucking around?”

Vagabond glared at him.

“You’re lucky you’re his boyfriend,” he growled, “If I killed you, he’d probably cry.”

“I’m n-“ Geoff started to protest.

_He’s never ashamed of being with me._

If Geoff wanted a chance, he had to stop being so defensive. Had to prove he really did want to be with him. 

“This guy, goes by Billy Blitz is an underling,” Vagabond pushed on, ignoring him, “Hangs around Davis. I’ve been trying to track him down.”

Geoff brightened.

“Blitz, I know him,” He spoke up, “Fucker has a shitty dive on Golden Grove.”

“Good, I’m going to murder him,” Vagabond announced, turning towards the door.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Geoff hastened to follow, “Let’s not be too hasty. We should be cautious about this.”

“Ha, “we”. You’re funny, Ramsey,” Vagabond muttered dryly as he headed for his bike.

The Vagabike, as Jeremy called it. When did Vagabond get a second seat on it? Geoff jogged to catch up and plonked himself on the second seat. Vagabond looked over his shoulder at him.

“What the hell are you doing?” He demanded.

“Taking the bitch seat,” Geoff answered blandly, “Since yours isn’t here to take his seat.”

“Don’t call him that, cuck,” Vagabond snarled.

“Why not?” Geoff prompted, “He likes it.”

Vagabond’s eyes narrowed at him.

“He...does?” He muttered.

Geoff’s eyes went wide. _Ha! I fucked him more! I know what he likes! Point for team Ramsey!_ Vagabond seemed to come to a similar realization and suddenly whipped back around to turn on his bike. It was impossible to tell, but Geoff thought he might’ve been blushing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Buddy cops Vagabond and Geoff. A thing of beauty.
> 
> @1stworldmutant for more gay beauty.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warnings: kidnapping, sexual assault

Ryan cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders. He was going to beat the guy until he gave up his boss. Then he was going to kill him. He had to be aware of the situation, he had to have been the guy who organized most of it while the main fuckhead was in prison. Anyone who hired the killers had to have known what was going on.

“Listen, Vagabond,” Ramsey muttered, “Let’s be a bit more collected about this. I know Blitz, he’ll bounce as soon as he sees you. Let me go in first, alright?”

Ryan considered just how hard Jeremy would cry if he snapped Ramsey’s neck. 

“No,” he answered curtly.

He ignored Ramsey’s bitching as he strode into the club. He hadn’t met a peon he couldn’t catch before now, so he had no reason to believe he couldn’t catch this one. His eyes scanned the club, searching for the most likely place this guy would be. Many people noticed him and several fled on sight. He waded through the crowd towards the bar. 

A flash of silver caught his eye as someone sprinted through an exit door. He ran after him, the crowd parting easily before him. He burst through the door to see the guy on a bike, already started up. _Shit._ The bike rocketed forward and he dropped into a sprint to try and catch him before he accelerated too much. 

As the bike hit the street, something swung out and slammed into the guy’s face. He flew back as his bike ran off without him. Ramsey rounded the corner, hoisting the two by four up onto his shoulder.

“Heya, Blitz,” he greeted cheerfully, “Long time no see. How’s that nose feel?”

“D-Damnit, Ramsey!” Blitz mumbled, “Y-you’re working w-with the masked freak?!”

Ryan growled, starting forward, but Ramsey beat him to it. He pressed a boot to Blitz’ thigh and pointed the makeshift weapon at him.

“I’d watch who you’re calling a freak,” he hissed viciously, “You don’t know shit about him.”

Ryan was stunned a moment. Ramsey leaned forward, pressing harder on Blitz’ thigh.

“Now my associate wants to torture-murder you, Billy,” he commented calmly, “Why should I ask him not to do that?”

“Wh-Whatever you want!” Blitz babbled, “I’ll tell you whatever y-you wanna know!”

“Pat, dirty cop,” Ryan spoke up, “Your boss. Where is he?”

Blitz shifted uncomfortably.

“He’s not very patient, buddy,” Ramsey warned.

“H-he’s hunkered d-down out in the outskirts,” Blitz rushed to answer, “O-old mechanic shop. B-barrow Auto.”

Ryan came forward to stand on the other side of the man who whimpered pathetically. 

“Pl-please, I-I told you!” He cried.

“See, thing is, I said I’d _ask,”_ Ramsey pointed out.

Ryan snorted.

“I also fucking lied,” Ramsey growled.

He swung the wood into the man’s ribs. At least three broke. He tossed the weapon to the side with a thunk and pulled away, checking his watch.

“Anyway, we should hurry and pick up the squad car,” he muttered, “So don’t take too long. Jer doesn’t have that kind of time.”

He walked around the corner and Ryan watched him go with raised eyebrows. Ramsey was even more ruthless than he’d previously thought. And he’d been right about the guy bolting. _Damnit._ Now Ryan had to admit Ramsey was fucking useful.

~

_My life is so fucking weird now. The fucking Vagabond is riding shotgun in my goddamn squad car. **The Vagabond.**_ Geoff cast a glance over at the man whose body was wound up as tightly as his. _He really does care about Jeremy._ Geoff had to at least give him credit for that. He was a murderer and a douchebag, but at least he gave a shit about Jeremy.

“I’m flattered, Ramsey,” Vagabond grunted, “But eyes on the road.”

Geoff snorted as he rolled his eyes. _Prick._ He looked ahead again and in the tiny bubble of silence, his mind wandered to Katie. They’d been lucky up until that night. Not every pair of soulmates have the good fortune to know each other before the soul triggers begin. They’d both been utterly delighted when they’d discovered it.

Geoff rubbed over where Katie’s phantom uterus had been. Occasionally he swore he could still feel her period cramps and he’d woken up with pain between his legs as he recalled her assault and death in his dreams. When they tell you about soul triggers in school, they never mention death. Why would they? They don’t want to freak out a bunch of kids.

When your soulmate dies, you feel it. You go cold and stiff all over, like they do. For Katie, Geoff slowly felt the cold creep in. He’d been frantic trying to find her, stumbling around the station and dragging Jack out to the squad car. His limbs were failing and he could feel her fading in his organs, in his heart especially. Weakening until suddenly his body seized up and she died. He screamed as he felt his connection to her sever, even though it didn’t hurt. It was the worst experience of his life and he was certain he was naturally colder than he’d been before.

“There it is,” Vagabond spoke up, snapping him from his thoughts.

Geoff checked around the place for a car, but couldn’t find one. There could be one inside, so he parked the squad car in front of the garage doors to prevent an escape. Vagabond hesitated as he turned off the car. His eyes were narrowed as he looked over the place.

“Something’s not right,” he muttered.

“Seriously?” Geoff snorted, rolling his eyes, “You can’t possibly know that. This isn’t a movie, Vagabond, you can’t just sense something. Jer doesn’t have time for this.”

He got out of the car and drew his weapon. _Something’s not right. Fuck off with that._ Geoff wasn’t going to wait around for gut feelings. If something wasn’t right, he was going to fix it with the business end of his service weapon. He pushed open the door, eyes darting around for threats, gun up. This was a sort of reception area that appeared to be totally empty. He crept forward, toward the door to the garage.

He opened it, but a hand suddenly stopped it from opening all the way. Geoff looked up at Vagabond’s gloved hand holding tightly onto the door. _What the fuck?_ Then he saw it: a thin wire attached to the door, leading into the shop and likely to a trap of some sort. _Oops._

“You almost just seriously injured yourself, pig,” Vagabond sneered, “That’s attached to a fucking shotgun trap.”

“Ah, th-that’ll do it,” Geoff laughed nervously.

Vagabond gripped the back of his collar and moved him aside. He leaned over the door and did... _something_ and the wire released. Geoff flinched, anticipating the bang of the shotgun firing, but it never came. Vagabond pulled the door open slowly, cautiously peeking into the garage. He reached an arm in and Geoff heard a soft click, indicating he’d disarmed another trap. Then he crouched down and disarmed a third, a pressure plate sort of trap.

Geoff followed him as he moved into the shop keeping his gun up so Vagabond’s hands could remain free to disarm any more traps they came across. He wanted to shoot the guy while his back was turned, but a pair of innocent brown doe eyes filled with tears popped into his head, reminding him why he couldn’t do that. He resisted the urge to childishly stick his tongue out at him. _Get a grip, Ramsey, you’re a grown man. Stop being a child._

They moved to an office door and after Vagabond disarmed a few more traps, they stepped inside. There wasn’t anyone inside. Instead, there was a giant banner strung up just past a desk that proudly announced congratulations to them. Just as they realized they fucked up, shutters slammed down over the windows and the door snapped closed before a shutter lowered on that as well. 

“Ah, that would be the something that’s not right,” Geoff commented dryly.

Damnit, Vagabond had been right.

~

Jeremy heard the door to holding open and felt his insides seize up. He didn’t know how he knew, but he did. It was the guy, Fitzpatrick, Geoff said his name was. He’d come directly to the station. He’d anticipated Jeremy would want to stay in holding. He’d anticipated everything, hadn’t he? Jeremy was fucking screwed.

“Hey, sweet thing,” Fitzpatrick called to him in an exaggerated drawl, “Got somethin’ I’m sure you’ll wanna see.”

Jeremy had a feeling that was definitely not the case, but worry clamped his heart. He stood up and carefully approached the man. He was grinning, wide and smug as he held up his phone. Jeremy squinted at it and noticed a video playing of two figures moving in a small room. Once he got close enough, he saw that they weren’t just any two figures, they were Geoff and Ryan. And it wasn’t a video, it was a security feed.

“Got two for the price of one,” The man laughed, “Your ass is quite magical, Dooley. You got a guy to work with his wife’s killer for the sake of it.”

“He didn’t kill Katie,” Jeremy argued, though he wasn’t sure why he bothered.

“Yeah, sure,” Fitzpatrick snorted, “Whatever helps you take it easier.”

Jeremy socked him in the mouth through the bars.

“You don’t know shit, you fuckwit!” He hissed.

Fitzpatrick touched his lip where it’d split between Jeremy’s hand and his teeth. He smeared blood as he swiped his thumb over it. He turned a predatory grin to Jeremy, eyes alight with a manic sort of look. Jeremy resisted the strong urge to stumble backwards away from him. Fight or flight was kicking in and even though his whole body screamed for flight, he knew he didn’t have anywhere to run.

“I’ll give you a free pass for that one,” Fitzpatrick sneered, “But Here’s the deal, darling. If you don’t cooperate, something bad will happen to your love triangle here.”

He wiggled the phone and Jeremy swallowed. He was afraid of that. The guy put his phone away and reached through the bars. Jeremy flinched, but allowed the man to pat his cheek. 

“Good boy,” He cooed.

Jeremy shuddered, feeling sick to his stomach. It didn’t feel good when it came from this piece of shit. The man pulled back and opened the door. 

“Stay,” He ordered as he approached. 

Jeremy felt cold and sweaty and terrified. What the hell was he supposed to do? Fitzpatrick shoved his upper back, sending his face into the bars. He huffed out an annoyed breath, but let him put cuffs on his wrists behind his back. He winced as they were tightened hard against his skin, allowing no wiggle room. Fitzpatrick crowded up behind him, pressing his hips to his ass and his mouth to his ear. Jeremy shuddered again, his queasiness growing.

“You feel how happy I am to see you?” The man growled in his ear, shoving his hips against him.

“Barely,” Jeremy bit back.

Fitzpatrick reared back and slammed his hand over Jeremy’s mouth, shoving his face more painfully into the bars. Jeremy glared at him, considered biting him, thought better of it. 

“You really are a masochist,” Fitzpatrick taunted, “You like me hurting you, don’t you? That why you’re provoking me, little bitch?”

Jeremy rolled his eyes. _He thinks this is enough to get me off? What a fucking idiot._ The guy reached around him and gripped his crotch, uncomfortably hard. Jeremy whined in pain behind his hand. 

“As much as I’d like to give you what you want,” Fitzpatrick grunted, jabbing his hips into Jeremy again, “We really must be going. If you so much as sneeze on our way out, I’ll flip a coin and you can watch as I slowly kill one of them. Now be a polite little bitch and tell me you understand.”

His hand lifted off Jeremy’s mouth and Jeremy had to swallow down his snarky replies.

“I understand, _sir,”_ he gritted through his teeth. 

Fitzpatrick kissed his ear with a pleased hum and Jeremy wanted to kill him more than he’d ever wanted to kill anyone before. He pulled away enough to start dragging Jeremy out of the place. Jeremy did his best to keep quiet, head down as they moved. He didn’t want to attract any attention. About halfway across the place they suddenly stopped and Jeremy looked up to see Jones and Free standing in front of them.

“The fuck are you doing with my suspect?” Jones demanded.

Jeremy tried to give him a look, tried to signal to let them pass.

“He’s being moved to a safe house,” Fitzpatrick lied smoothly, “By order of the FBI.”

He pulled free a badge to show Jones.

“And why was I not informed?” Jones pressed.

“For his and your safety,” Fitzpatrick answered, “If you’ll excuse us, we really must be going.”

Jeremy’s eyes were suddenly drawn to Free whose mouth was moving, but no words were coming out.

_Are you in trouble?_

Jeremy glanced at Fitzpatrick who was busy speaking with Jones. Jeremy mouthed back at Free.

_Yes, but he has Geoff._

Free’s golden face paled at that, but he nodded his understanding. He lightly touched Jones’ hand which appeared to be the signal as Jones sighed heavily and shrugged.

“Alright, whatever,” he grumbled, “I don’t get paid enough for this.”

The two shuffled off and Fitzpatrick continued the journey outside. Jeremy was surprised when the man put him in the back of his own squad car. _Then there’s no doubt about it, he has Geoff and therefore also has Ryan._ He was going to be in for a rude awakening when the two of them busted out. Jeremy just had to play nice and buy them a little time to figure it out, but he was confident the two of them were the most capable of freeing themselves if anyone he knew.

Of course, he didn’t know a lot of people, so it really wasn’t a very difficult accomplishment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yo, you guys wanna hear a joke? So I wrote something purely fluffy.   
> Hahahahahahahaha
> 
> @1stworldmutant for more sarcasm.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warnings: panic attack

“No, no, no!” Vagabond screeched at the shutters, “No, open! Open!”

He pushed and pulled and rammed his shoulder into them. He devolved into kicking and punching them repeatedly, quickly upgrading from annoyed to fully panicked. Geoff watched helplessly as he broke down. Eventually he ended up on the ground, arms hugging his knees to his chest. He was rocking back and forth and Geoff had no idea what the fuck to do. _This is a panic attack, right?_

“Pl-please, let me out,” Vagabond cried softly, “I’ll be a good boy, I promise! I’ll be good, please!”

Geoff approached cautiously, feeling like he was approaching a wild animal. He crouched down in front of him. _Okay. I need to bring him back to the present, but I got to be careful not to spook him._ He reached out to tap him on the hand or something, but halted as Vagabond’s head lifted. His eyes were unfocused.

“H-he said if I was good...” he whispered, tearfully, “I wouldn’t have to go back in. I was a good boy, I was, wasn’t I? I-I took it all and I didn’t even cry!”

Geoff’s heart tore in two. As he’d begun to suspect: the seventh wasn’t the first time it’d happened. This was a repeated trauma. Geoff took his hand and squeezed.

“You were,” he assured him, “You were a good boy. You’re not there, buddy. You’re here in 2017 with me. We got a little stuck, but we’re okay, we’re gonna get out. I need you to stay with me. We’re gonna figure this out, okay?”

Vagabond nodded shakily, his hand twisting in Geoff’s and squeezing tightly.

“Good-“ Geoff stopped himself, “Uh, well done. You’re doing great.”

He reached out and patted Vagabond’s head. Vagabond’s eyes seemed to brighten at that so Geoff thought maybe he was doing alright in comforting him. He got back to his feet and Vagabond slowly followed. Geoff gave him another “well done” and a head pat. Then he focused on the task at hand, pulling Vagabond along with him as he inspected the shutters. 

They had to be automatic, intended to shut once they’d stepped into the room. Which meant there had to be a motion sensor or something, somewhere. He found it on the wall, at the very bottom, about halfway through the room. Far enough into the room to make it difficult for them to make it back to the door before it closed. The sensor was connected to the shutters via wires that ran through the walls. 

“Hey, you disarmed the traps,” Geoff pointed out, “Do you know anything about wiring?”

Vagabond still looked a bit dazed, but he nodded. 

“You think if I bust open the wall, you can do anything?” Geoff questioned.

Vagabond looked at the sensor, leaning forward to pull on it slightly and check the wires running out it’s back. He frowned, his eyes clearing a bit as he observed it. With something to focus on, he seemed to be coming back to himself. Eventually he nodded at Geoff.

“You gonna be okay if I let go?” Geoff asked, squeezing his hand.

Vagabond looked down at their joined hands in surprise and immediately jerked his away. His eyes darted away and Geoff thought he must be blushing. He patted his head again and turned back to the wall to begin tearing open the plaster. 

~

”Alright, here we are,” Fitzpatrick announced.

Jeremy looked around the basement, already extremely uncomfortable. There were shackles on the wall and in the middle of the room over a bench of sorts. Jeremy didn’t need to be a genius to figure out what _that_ was for. There was a bed, a toilet, a sink, and a shower as well. This was not a new addition. He’d had other captives before. Jeremy’s guts felt like ice. He’d had other captives, but had never been caught. Where did he bury them, Jeremy wondered.

“Okay, I’m going to uncuff you,” Fitzpatrick informed him, “Then you’re going to slowly and carefully strip. No sudden movements or I might get startled.”

Jeremy nodded and the cuffs were removed. He shakily removed his clothing, letting them pile at his feet. He rubbed his arms as Fitzpatrick stared at him. _Jesus, why is it always a basement? It’s fucking cold._

“Aright, turn around and bend over for me,” Fitzpatrick ordered.

Jeremy did so, but he really struggled not to make a sarcastic comment about it. The man roughly spread his ass cheeks to inspect the merchandise, Jeremy supposed and made an annoyed sound.

“Did Vagabond do that?!” He demanded.

Jeremy looked over his shoulder.

“Do what?” Jeremy asked, utterly confused.

Fitzpatrick rubbed a thumb over Jeremy’s asshole and Jeremy hissed as it caused a flare of stinging pain. _Oh, there’s a tear._ He recalled Ryan seeing his ass and deciding suddenly to ride him. Even in this terrible position, he smiled softly. _He didn’t want to make it worse._ An open palm to his ass jarred him from his thoughts.

“You’re mine now,” Fitzpatrick growled, “Say it.”

Jeremy really didn’t want to. He wasn’t sure why. He didn’t know what about this phrase he was so avidly against, but it churned his stomach and his mouth refused to say it. He was dragged to the bench and slammed over it. He wheezed as the shackles closed around his wrists and ankles. Fitzpatrick gripped his chin tightly, forcing his head back to look up at him. Jeremy glared defiantly at him.

“Say it,” The man growled, “Or I will make you say it.”

“And how the hell are you going to do that?” Jeremy sneered, “You gonna hurt me? I’m a fucking masochist, bring it on, asswipe.”

His chin was let go of and he got a hard backhand that made his eyes water. He turned his eyes back up to look at the man.

“Got anything else?” He muttered, bored, “Or are you just going to fuck around all day?”

He got a fist to the jaw for that one. He wiggled his jaw and rolled his eyes. _At least with the others I was overwhelmed with numbers._ Apparently annoyed he was having little effect on Jeremy, Fitzpatrick stormed from the room, returning a moment later. Jeremy glanced at him over his shoulder and watched him walk around the bench. He held aloft the flogger he’d retrieved with a smug look. Jeremy raised his eyebrows, unimpressed. Geoff had used one of those, not that bad. Not when your soulmate had been whipped before. Now whips were bad. 

“You realize I’ve fucked the Vagabond, right?” Jeremy muttered, “You think that scares me?”

Admittedly, Ryan hadn’t been all that rough with him. They were working up to it. He had not expected to get the thing across the face, so he supposed he had to give the guy credit for that. Tears naturally leaked from his eyes as his face was hit repeatedly. It did sting, it wasn’t like he _didn’t_ feel it, but at some point, pain had become second nature. If you get hurt enough times, pain begins to take a back burner. 

Jeremy was an expert on putting pain into the back of his mind. If he hadn’t become an expert, Ryan’s constant pain would have completely ruined his life. While Ryan’s life revolved around pain, Jeremy’s revolved around trying to ignore it. Of course, Jeremy basically ignoring the pain only fueled Fitzpatrick’s rage. Which was fine with Jeremy. If he was focused on Jeremy, he couldn’t see Geoff and Ryan’s escape.

~

Ryan jolted as the wires sparked, grateful he always wore his gloves. Ramsey peeked over his shoulder before continuing to pace around the room. Ah yes, now there was that to deal with. Ramsey had imprinted on him and gone full dad mode, like Ryan was Free or Jones. The panic attack had endeared Ryan to him, it seemed. 

Since he saw the panic attack he had to die, even if it did make Jeremy cry. Ryan felt preemptively guilty, Jeremy’s teary eyes floating in his brain as he tried to get the shutters to un-shutter. He couldn’t let his greatest enemy know his greatest weakness. Especially when his greatest love didn’t even know it. 

He paused. Greatest love. _Do I love Jeremy?_ He shook his head, focusing back on the wires. Now wasn’t the time to be asking that. Later, once Jeremy was safely in his arms, he’d decide. The wires sparked again and he jumped, having distracted himself. Ramsey was at his side again. He whipped out a knife and pointed it at the man’s crotch.

“If you don’t back the fuck off,” He growled, “I’ll make sure there’s even less for Jeremy to play with.”

“He doesn’t play with it any more!” Ramsey snapped.

Ryan looked up at him in surprise.

“But you’re his boyfriend,” he pointed out, “And you’ve definitely had sex, I felt it.”

“I’m not his boyfriend,” Ramsey huffed, looking annoyed, “Technically I never was, but we did have sex. A lot.”

Ryan frowned, looking away. Jeremy hadn’t ever actually said he had a boyfriend. He hadn’t denied it, but he also never actually confirmed it. Ryan had assumed things about their relationship. He stood up suddenly, crowding into Ramsey’s space.

“So you used him,” he sneered, “Despite knowing Jeremy couldn’t just have a fuck buddy, you tried to make that work.”

“How the actual fuck would I have known that?” Ramsey muttered, “I just met him a few months ago, dude.”

Ryan opened his mouth to tell him he was a fucking idiot, but realized something.

“You didn’t know he was a virgin, did you?” He realized, “Because of how he is, you didn’t know he was a virgin.”

Ramsey’s mouth dropped open and his face went pale.

“Oh god,” he whispered, “I didn’t... that’s why he... oh no.”

He abruptly sat down, hard and Ryan put away his knife. Ramsey was an idiot apparently. 

“No wonder he reminded me of Katie,” Ramsey muttered, a breathy chuckle puffing out of him.

Ryan frowned. 

“Who the fuck is that?” He grumbled, moving back to the wall.

Ramsey was quiet a moment.

“You didn’t even know her name,” he breathed.

Ryan glanced at him. He was crying. Ryan turned more fully towards him.

“The hell are you talking about?” He demanded, “I kill someone you loved? Is that what this whole vendetta has been about?”

Ramsey laughed, sounding sort of bitter, as he wiped at his tears. The sound startled Ryan. He couldn’t recall ever seeing the man like this before. He looked vulnerable. 

“Before I say this,” He murmured, “Just know, Jeremy didn’t tell me and I found out by accident, okay?”

Ryan was becoming increasingly concerned, but nodded for him to go ahead.

“Katie was my soulmate,” Ramsey explained, “You met her or maybe you didn’t, but you were there when she died. September 7th, 2002. Before I found out it was you, Jeremy told me his soulmate tried to save Katie. I don’t know what all happened, but I know enough to know you aren’t what I thought you were. I thought you killed her, but you tried to help her, didn’t you?”

Ryan was speechless. The person, the one _he_ killed, was Ramsey’s soulmate? It was no wonder Ramsey was so keen on trying to take him down. Ryan finally nodded, unable to make himself say anything. 

“Thank you,” Ramsey spoke quietly, “For trying. You didn’t even know her name and you tried to save her.”

“It was my fault she was there,” Ryan blurted before he could stop himself, “When he got bored, he... hurt someone else. I had to do something! It’s not like I’m a good person, it was just my responsibility!”

“You’re an idiot, aren’t you?” Ramsey grunted.

Ryan tossed him a heated look, but Ramsey was smiling. 

“Alright, I guess I get it now,” He laughed, “Maybe Jeremy’s not so wrong about you after all.”

“Yeah, maybe he wasn’t wrong about you either,” Ryan grumbled, looking away, “If you tell anyone any of this, I’m giving you a Columbian necktie.”

“Who the hell would believe me?” Ramsey scoffed, “Anyway, enough bonding, it’s too gay in here.”

Ryan snorted.

“I can’t get them open,” he confessed, “I think the opening mechanism must be on the outside.”

“Great.”

Ramsey sighed heavily. 

“I guess we’re fucked then,” he muttered, “Damnit, I should’ve listened to you.”

“Yeah, you should’ve,” Ryan snorted, leaning against the wall, “But...I should’ve listened to you about Blitz.”

“So we’re even?” Ramsey mumbled dryly.

“Yeah, I guess so.”

Ryan tilted his head back and suddenly noticed a security camera in the corner of the room. 

“Smile, Ramsey,” He grunted, waving, “We’re on camera.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trapping two people in a small space is scientifically proven to either make them like or hate each other. 
> 
> @1stworldmutant for more false science facts.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warnings: rape, threats of murder, forced diapering

They’d tried everything they could think of. The shutters were sealed. They couldn’t get anything wedged between the edges. They were too solid to break through. And behind the plaster on the walls was stone. The original intent was probably to prevent any runaway cars from ploughing right through the office.

After trying everything, Geoff had taken off his coat, rolled up his sleeves and plopped down, defeated. Vagabond had taken his jacket and mask off, which certainly shocked Geoff and he was pacing back and forth across the office while Geoff’s eyes followed him. He was deep in thought, looking like he was calculating possibilities and tracking new ideas. He certainly always outsmarted Geoff, he was a fucking genius. 

He was fucking pretty too, which was pissing Geoff off to no end. Why the hell was the Vagabond so pretty?! And he was taller too. His long hair was pretty too. Even Geoff would be happy to run his hands through it. It was not looking good for Team Ramsey.

Ryan was meanwhile thinking it wasn’t looking too good for Team Haywood. _Look at him sitting there calm as hell like we’re not slowly losing oxygen. We’re gonna fucking die and he could give a shit._ No wonder Jeremy liked him, he was so chill. The sort of chill Ryan always wished he could find. Like nothing mattered.

Well, that wasn’t totally true, he did actually seem to care about Jeremy. Ryan bet he showed Jeremy the sort of affection he deserved too. Ryan was still working on hugging properly. Ramsey on the other hand was a functioning member of society. And he was manly. Ryan’s height afforded him some amount of presence, but without the Vagabond getup he was awkward and gangly. Ramsey, on the other hand, was covered in tattoos and built like a boxer.

In short, the two were morons, but the good news was they were morons with friends.

_Bang bang bang!_

“Geoff, you in there?” Michael’s voice called from the other side of one of the shutters.

Geoff leapt up and hurried over.

“Yeah, I’m here!” He shouted.

“Vagabond, you there too?” Ray chimed in.

Ryan’s eyebrows went up as he too hurried over to the shutter.

“Yes, I’m here too!” He yelled, “How the hell did you find us?”

“No time for that shit now!” Michael cut in, “We need to get you the fuck out of here! Dooley’s in trouble!”

Geoff and Ryan shared a look of worry.

~

Jeremy hissed as Fitzpatrick pushed into him. Everything ached and stung. Jeremy’s indifference had certainly been a driving force for the man’s rage. He’d used the flogger on every available patch of skin, then flipped him over and did the same on the other side. Then he put him back on his stomach and decided to fuck him. 

Jeremy squeezed his eyes shut. _Don’t cry. Don’t cry over this pathetic fuck._ Technically he’d already cried, but those were involuntary tears of pain. What was welling up now was tears of sadness and fear. He was fucking terrified. The pain meant nothing to him. It was being used by this man that scared him so much. He hated it, hated every part of the man, and most of all hated being an object.

Objects, toys, possessions. They were used and used until they were used up and then they were tossed. And when they weren’t being used, they were alone. Jeremy didn’t want to be alone any more. Didn’t want to be used up in a cold basement until he wasn’t fun, then murdered and buried in pieces across San Andreas. 

Okay, so he didn’t know about that last bit, but it was obvious the man would kill him as soon as he found Jeremy no longer useful or fun to play with. Unfortunately, Jeremy had no desire to make himself fun to play with. He didn’t want to give the man anything. He didn’t want to die, but he wanted even less to play this man’s sick games. 

_Ryan, is this what it was like for you? Stuck between a rock and a hard dick?_ Jeremy winced as a particularly hard thrust rammed into him, jarring him from his thoughts long enough to hear some of the man’s filth. 

“-second I saw you,” he was grunting, “I knew I had to have you. God your body is meant to be fucked. And it’s mine now. You’re never getting out of here. Not alive. But maybe if you’re a good boy, I’ll keep you around longer than a week.”

_A week? Jeez, what a turnover rate. That’s about the same as McDonald’s._ Jeremy would kill for some fries right then. Geoff almost always made him go to Taco Bell, the prick. Jeremy smiled fondly. At least the last few months had been some of the best of his life. He had a relationship, had loads of great sex, solved a bunch of crimes, and had a lot of fun. 

Geoff may not have done it intentionally, but he’d really brightened Jeremy’s mood significantly. Jeremy knew he’d never fill Katie’s spot, especially since he was going to die soon, but he was content to have filled any spot in Geoff’s heart. 

And having Ryan, well, that was something magical. Literally. The excitement of Ryan chasing him and claiming him added to the warm feeling of knowing he was special to him was like fireworks on the Fourth of July. Things made sense with him. Choosing to be with him made sense. Maybe in the end it was the soul bond, but it felt good to finally be with him. After all the pain he’d felt from him...it was like the journey was completed. 

Jeremy was jarred from his thoughts again as the guy finished. _Ew._ Jeremy wrinkled his nose and huffed as jizz ran down his sore thigh. He had an open wound there that it slid into. _That’s definitely not sanitary. And it fucking stings._ He was unshackled and dragged to the shower. 

“Bend over, spread your ass,” Fitzpatrick ordered.

Jeremy did so, growling in pain as cold water was shot directly over his sore asshole. He threw a glare at the man who just grinned smugly. _Ugh. Could the day get worse?_ Once most of the jizz was gone, he was dragged to the bed and ordered to lay down on his back. He grunted in pain as he settled onto the sheets. Everything hurt.

He looked down in surprise as something was slid under his ass. _What is he-?_ Jeremy paled as he realized what he was doing. _Nuh-uh, no sir, not today or any other day!_ He scrambled backwards away from him, trying to crawl up the bed. He grabbed his ankle and yanked him back down. Jeremy kicked, trying to get free.

“No fucking way!” He growled, “Not happening you fucking sicko!”

“You don’t have a choice,” Fitzpatrick reminded him, “Stop being a bad boy.”

“Get off the fuck off me, you freak!” Jeremy hissed back, kicking away harder.

Fitzpatrick gripped his other ankle and pulled him over the edge of the bed. Before Jeremy had a chance to crawl away, he put his knee on the small of his back, causing him to cry out in pain. Then his hand smacked against his sore ass. He shouted, squirming, trying to get away. He struggled as Fitzpatrick spanked his ass raw and burning, on top of the already painful welts of the flogger. He eventually went limp, exhausted and cried softly into the sheets. 

“You ready to be a good boy?” Fitzpatrick asked, sounding almost gentle.

Jeremy nodded miserably.

“Good, now flip over,” His tormentor ordered.

Jeremy flipped onto his back and sobbed in humiliation and defeat as Fitzpatrick put the diaper on him. He covered his aching face with his aching arms and sobbed. _I don’t wanna do this I don’t wanna be here I wanna go home! I wanna go home! I never should’ve come to Los Santos!_ He cried as he was shackled to the wall. 

“Look at you being all tame now,” Fitzpatrick taunted, “All I had to do was spank you. I guess you really are a baby then. The diaper is just for connivence, but you seem to take to it well. Do I even have to warn you not to take it off?”

Jeremy surged off the bed and swung. The blow to the face took him by surprise and he reeled a second, but caught the second swing. Then delivered one of his own so hard it knocked a tooth loose in Jeremy’s mouth. Jeremy held his face, glaring at him through his tears as blood filled his mouth.

“You just don’t fucking get it, do you?” Fitzpatrick sneered, “You’re stuck here you little slut. You’re not getting rescued. You’re here until you stop entertaining me, then I’m going to gut you like an animal.”

He gripped Jeremy’s throat in one hand and yanked him up in front of his face. Jeremy spat blood directly into his eyes. Fitzpatrick snarled and then hit him again. Then he tossed him off the bed and slammed his boot into Jeremy’s ribs again and again. Jeremy felt two crack as he did his best to contain his shouts and cries of pain. 

Once he was satisfied that he beat Jeremy into submission, he dragged him to where the shackles were attached to the wall. He pulled them through rings, shortening the chain until Jeremy could only barely remain curled up on the ground in front of the wall. Then he yanked Jeremy up by his hair.

“You don’t want to be good?” He hissed, “Fine. You don’t have to be. But I guarantee you, you’ll have a much better end to your short, pathetic existence if you behave.”

Jeremy glared at him, refraining from snarking. Fitzpatrick grinned smugly at his silence and let him go. Jeremy glared as he left the room. He counted out a minute before he spat his tooth into his palm and jammed it into one of the locks on the shackles. _Yeah, we’ll see whose existence is pathetic, asshole._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And on this day, Mayle asked herself if one could actually pick a lock with a tooth. To which she answered “I dunno, maybe?”
> 
> @1stworldmutant for more horribly researched writing.


	18. Chapter 18

After breaking the tooth, Jeremy managed to wedge it in the lock and get it to open it halfway. But it wouldn’t open fully and he couldn’t get it back out again. _Damnit._ He could maybe break his hand and dislocate his thumb to try and slip out, but then he probably couldn’t get the other one done. 

_Shit._ He sighed heavily and yanked a bit on the chain. Any weak points, maybe? He was surprised to find there were in fact weak points. The ring that was used to shorten the length of the chain, while locked, was not nearly as secure as it could’ve been. If he twisted the chain around enough, he was certain he could get it to pop right off. Then he’d be able to reach the bed again and if he broke a piece off the frame, he could jam it between the wall and the attachment. Which is exactly what he did. 

The heavy chains were a pain in the ass, but now he was free and had a bent piece of metal to use as a weapon. The door was locked from the outside and after a few minutes of trying, he couldn’t manage to get the metal wedged into the door. He’d have to wait until Fitzpatrick got back. Was he even still around? Jesus, what time was it?

Jeremy felt very exhausted, very suddenly, but didn’t dare move from his position at the door. The element of surprise was all he had going for him. If he took a fucking nap, he’d probably wake up with a dick in his ass and his weapon gone. 

~

“Now spark it,” Vagabond called through the shutter.

He’d been directing Michael on how to get the shutters open for twenty minutes and Geoff was relieved and impressed when the shutters opened. He grabbed Vagabond’s elbow as he started to sprint to the door. The man made a feral sort of noise, looking like he’d rip Geoff apart. Geoff pointed at the spot where he’d tossed down his mask and jacket. This time he actually saw him blush pink. 

“S-sorry,” he muttered as he retrieved them, “Thanks.”

“Nah, my fault,” Geoff dismissed, “Shouldn’t have just grabbed you like that.”

Vagabond threw him a confused frown before the mask went on. The door of the office opened and Michael gestured at them to get out, clearly not keen on entering the room that had been sealed two seconds ago. 

“Where’s Jeremy?” Vagabond and Geoff demanded together as they followed the other two from the auto shop.

“No idea,” Michael answered, “Gavin’s sifting through some records trying to find the guy’s properties, see if there’s some place he could be hiding him.”

“I’m Ray by the way,” BrownMan spoke up, giving Geoff a little way.

“You’re BrownMan is what you are,” Geoff answered gruffly, “But I’m gonna pretend I don’t know that.”

Ray grinned widely at him as they stepped up to the exit.

“Wait, something’s not right,” Vagabond hissed, “Hit the deck!”

The four of them dropped just as the sound of gunfire echoed through the place. They crawled behind the receptionist desk for more cover and drew their weapons. 

“How many?” Michael grunted at Ray.

Ray paused a moment as the gunfire ceased.

“Eight,” he muttered, “But I think we’re getting surrounded.”

“We are,” Vagabond confirmed, “There’s at least another four out back, sneaking up on us.”

“Split up?” Geoff suggested.

“Ramsey, you take Ray to the front,” Vagabond instructed, “I’ll go with Jones to the back.”

They split up without protest, Geoff and Ray took up positions beside windows to peek outside. There were in fact eight thugs with autos. Geoff wasn’t looking forward to this firefight. 

~

The door opened and Jeremy swung as soon as the guy’s nose was within view. The chains on his wrists unbalanced him and he hit his stomach instead of his chest, but the guy doubled over wheezing so Jeremy took it as a win. He swiped sideways, whacking the guy on the side of his head. The guy fell, groaning and Jeremy fumbled on his belt for keys before getting through the door. 

He fumbled with the not destroyed shackle lock and got it off as he hurried down the hallway. The other would have to wait unfortunately. Super pesky, dragging the chain on the floor of the concrete building towards what he hoped was freedom. Without windows or signs or any other indication, he had no idea where he was going. Luckily it didn’t seem to be that big. 

Unluckily, he obviously knew nothing about the place or how it was one big circle. Nor did he expect Fitzpatrick to have an accomplice. With a cattle prod no less. His body seized up as it was stuck into his bare belly. His jaw clenched up and a snarl clawed it’s way up his throat. 

~

“FUCK!” Ryan shouted as his whole body seized. 

_Taser?_ Where the hell had the taser come from?! He looked down as the electricity stopped pumping into him to rip out barbs despite the pain it would cause. _No barbs. Not tased. What the fuck?_

“Jeremy!” He hissed.

Jones next to him was trying to speak to him, but Ryan was unable to respond when he seized again.

~

Jeremy huffed, trying to catch his breath as the second poke was even worse than the first. His body was on fire. Everything was cramped, everything ached, he was dizzy as he forced his brain to push through the pain. _Got to fight._ The cattle prod was taken off him and he gasped. Then he swung the metal with a great deal of difficulty and knocked the prod away. 

Blitz was the accomplice. Jeremy recognized him as someone Geoff had gotten information from. He was holding his arm to his side like he was injured. His face had a massive boot shaped bruise on it.

“I see...you met...my friends,” Jeremy panted, “Real swell fellas, huh?”

He swung the metal into his elbow, no doubt shattering it. Blitz groaned miserably and stumbled sideways into the wall. _He actually looks like he’s having a worse day than me._ Jeremy started past him, having no interest in fighting someone who couldn’t possibly win, but Blitz was a moron. He swung his boot between Jeremy’s legs and Jeremy hunched over, stars exploding in his vision. (Ryan hissed out curses as he doubled over. He was glad Jones was there shooting too or this would’ve been a terrible fight for him.) 

“You...kicked me in the balls,” Jeremy grunted, “You’re a fucking dick!”

He spun, swinging the bar at the guy’s head. Blitz threw up a hand to block it, but only managed to get his hand broken in the process. Jeremy wobbled away from him, his whole body protesting his every movement. Twitching and unsteady, he made his way to what he was pleased to find was the exit. The torture basement opened into a more regular looking basement filled with all sorts of illegal things and Jeremy’s clothes.

Jeremy actually cried with relief when he saw them, quickly getting the diaper off himself to pull on his underwear. He scooped up the rest of his clothes and found a loaded handgun on the table. He wasn’t going to wait around for either Fitzpatrick or Blitz to recover. He was shaking and stumbling, trying his damndest to ignore his aches and pains as he jogged up the stairs and through a door. 

_Where am I?_ Fitzpatrick had put a hood on his head in the middle of their journey and Jeremy was pretty sure he’d driven around a lot to purposely make it difficult for him to figure out where they were. He heard gunfire not too far from him and carefully crept his way towards it. Some sort of shootout was happening but it was hard to tell what all was going on with it being so dark. 

Before he could get close enough to see anyone, a hand landed on his shoulder, squeezing one of the particularly bad welts. (Ryan grunted, arm jerking as the aching became sharp and burning. _Damnit, what the hell is he doing to him??_ ) Jeremy dropped his clothes and sent an elbow back. Fitzpatrick barely even winced, grabbing Jeremy’s hand as he started to point the gun over his shoulder at him. 

They struggled a second with Jeremy about to mule kick him when his hand stopped squeezing and started clawing. Jeremy and Ryan both cried out as fingernails raked over the burning bruises, leaving sharp stinging trails over Jeremy’s skin. Jeremys hand squeezed and the gun fired next to his head. 

His ear rang as he released the gun and stumbled, trying to distance himself from Fitzpatrick. As the guy got the gun in his hand, Jeremy dropped into a sprint. He wasn’t exactly sure why he thought running into a firefight would help, but that’s what he did. Until he got shot. 

Like getting hit with a truck, the force bowled him over. 

“Jeremy!” Ryan’s voice shouted over gunfire.

Jeremy landed on his face. Wow, it was different in person. 

“R-Ryan?” Jeremy called weakly.

“What the fuck?! _Dooley?!”_ Jones’ incredulous voice yelled at him.

Suddenly Ryan was there. Jeremy reached for him as he shifted him around. He grabbed his jacket. He was cold and tired and in pain.

“Take that, soulmate,” He rasped, “Your turn, f-fucking dick.”

“Jeremy, you’re enough of a-a pain in my ass,” Ryan huffed, “I don’t need your pain too.”

“S-suck it...scrub,” Jeremy croaked, “Please tell m-me...I’m not gonna die in...m-my underwear.”

“You’re not gonna die in your underwear,” Ryan assured him.

He’d been moving around a lot, but Jeremy was already half asleep, so he had no clue what he was doing.

“You have the right to remain silent,” Geoff growled nearby.

Jeremy cast his eyes around trying to find him. He was standing over Fitzpatrick. With the baseball bat. _Yikes._

“Anything you say can be used against you in a court of law,” he continued.

_Smack! Crack!_

Fitzpatrick wailed in pain as his leg was broken. Jeremy winced. Ryan took his chin and turned his face away.

“Don’t look, baby,” He muttered, “Just focus on me, okay?”

“O-okay,” Jeremy grunted, “Wh-What are you d-doing to me?”

“Just some first aid until the paramedics arrive,” Ryan answered, “Collapsing a lung after all this would be a pain in the ass.”

“I love you,” Jeremy groaned miserably.

Ryan stiffened against him, but he was too tired to worry about it. 

“I...think I love you too,” he mumbled, continuing whatever he was doing.

They hissed together as he pressed hard against the wound. 

“At least w-we know how l-ong it takes for Soulex to w-wear off,” Jeremy chuckled feebly, “I’m g-gonna sleep now.”

“Okay, Jeremy.”

He was out like a light. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enough people said they didn’t think he could pick the lock with his tooth that I made him fail. XD
> 
> @1stworldmutant for more senseless violence.


	19. Chapter 19

“You have the right to an attorney,” Ramsey snarled.

_Smack!_

Even Ryan winced a bit at the sickening sound of the bat hitting the guy’s thigh.

“If you can’t afford one-“ he continued.

_Smack! Crack!_

The sound of the man’s femur breaking echoed in the night.

“One can be appointed to you.”

_ Smack! _

Sirens were getting close enough to hear and Ryan instinctively held Jeremy closer to him. _Wait, no, the sirens are good for Jeremy._

“Now, shitbag,” Ramsey hissed, “This is when I’d tell you that you don’t have to tell us shit, but we both know that’s not true. You fucked the wrong kid, Patty.”

_ Smack! _

The guy’s pathetic sounds cut off as the bat knocked him out. 

“Hey, Vagabond,” Ray muttered, “Time for us to bounce.”

Ryan looked up, then back down at Jeremy. The sirens were getting closer. Ramsey crouched down on Jeremy’s other side. He passed the bat to Ryan and took over keeping pressure on Jeremy’s wound. Ryan hesitated a second longer, but watching Ramsey gently brushing dirt off Jeremy’s welted face reminded him that the man had worked just as hard to get to Jeremy as Ryan had. With one last glance at Jeremy he got up and followed Ray.

Geoff held Jeremy close to him as he waited for the paramedics. _I know you’re gonna say it’s not my fault, but how can I believe that? I wasn’t there when you needed me._ He planned to make sure he was there from then on. If that meant he was best friends with Vagabond now, then he’d buy fucking friendship bracelets and braid his damn hair. Even though he wanted to punch him in the dick. He needed to quit being a jealous child and just accept that he wasn’t Jeremy’s destiny or whatever. What he wanted was unimportant.

~

Jeremy woke up aching. _Well, that’s to be expected._ He weakly shifted, trying to lift himself into a more vertical position. Geoff’s familiar form was slumped forward over the hospital bed, gently holding his hand with both of his. His head rested on Jeremy’s thigh and he started to stir as Jeremy moved around.

“Jeremy!” He shouted, shooting upright, “You’re awake!”

“Yeah, I guess you could say that,” Jeremy grumbled, “Will you keep it down? I have the worst migraine.”

“Sorry,” Geoff mumbled, “You’ve been asleep like twelve hours.”

“Yeah, I’m fucking tired,” Jeremy grunted, “Surprise, surprise.”

He shifted, popping his spine and sighing with relief. _Better._ A flurry of medical personal overwhelmed him suddenly and he tiredly did his best to keep up with them. Suddenly, in the middle of the flurry, there was a ruckus down the hall.

“Do not get in my way!” Ryan’s voice shouted, “I will cut your liver out you pesky fly!”

Jeremy covered his face with a miserable groan. Geoff hopped up and rushed to the door.

“Hey, George, stand down,” He called, “He’s approved.”

There was some grumbling and Ryan appeared in the doorway, quickly moving to Jeremy’s side. The staff made way for him, all nervously eyeing the blood splattered over him. 

“Jeremy!” He cried out, “You’re awake!”

Jeremy snorted, rubbing at his eyes.

“Idiots,” he mumbled.

Ryan sat down, taking his hand and squeezing tightly. He winced as doing so shot fresh pain up their arms. He didn’t seem that concerned about it though, staring into Jeremy’s eyes. _Searching._

“How are you...mentally?” He finally asked, quietly.

“Too tired to worry about my mental health,” Jeremy muttered.

The medical people were fluttering around him again and Jeremy wanted them to fuck off. He was asked if he wanted pain medicine and he told them to fuck off. Eventually they did do so, leaving Jeremy alone with Geoff and Ryan. He shifted around, trying to get comfortable, but was of course unable to with every part of his skin covered in welts, wounds, and bruises. He laid back, staring at the ceiling.

“Jeremy?” Ryan called softly, “Are you...no, that’s a stupid question.”

He leaned down, pressing his forehead to the back of Jeremy’s hand. 

“I’m not good at this,” he muttered.

“Just shut up,” Jeremy mumbled, tiredly, “You’re here, that’s all I want.”

“Do you want me to leave?” Geoff asked quietly.

“No, I want you with me too,” Jeremy answered, “Now shut your stupid mouths. I’m tired.”

He curled up, wincing a bit and promptly fell asleep. Geoff glanced at Vagabond, trying not to be too obvious. He looked exhausted. Covered in blood, bags under his eyes, and mouth pulled into a small frown. He’d probably been all over LS, tracking down Blitz who had managed to slip away in the confusion. 

“Hey, let’s go get some coffee,” Geoff suggested.

Vagabond looked at him, confused, but followed him out the door and down the hallway. They stopped in front of the coffee machine. Geoff punched some buttons and coffee began dripping out.

“So?” He prompted, not looking up.

“He fled to Venturas,” Vagabond answered, “I just got the area he’s in when I felt the soul trigger.”

Geoff looked at him in surprise.

“I thought you took SoulEx?” He asked, confused, “How do you feel his pain?”

Vagabond looked hesitant as he met his eyes.

“Doesn’t work like that for us,” he muttered, “We both have to take it. There’s actually a lot of soulmates out there that have to do it that way.”

“Are you going to be able to go to Venturas like that?” Geoff asked skeptically.

Vagabond sighed, his shoulders dropping. He looked defeated. If Vagabond looked defeated, Geoff wondered what the hell they were gonna do.

“I have to if I’m going to get my hands on the little weasel,” Vagabond grumbled.

“I’ll go with you,” Geoff offered.

_Why the fuck did you just say that, me?!_ Vagabond squinted at him suspiciously. 

“Why?” 

Geoff frowned at him.

“I want to get the guy too,” he grunted, “Why wouldn’t I?”

“I’m going to kill him,” Vagabond pointed out.

“Shoulda killed him before,” Geoff muttered bitterly. 

Vagabond gripped his collar and slammed him against the coffee machine. 

“I tell you when to oink, stupid pig?” He growled centimeters from his face, “When I want advice on how and when to kill people, I’ll ask someone who doesn’t hide behind a fucking _badge.”_

“Really, _I’m_ the one who’s hiding, Vagabond?” Geoff hissed, “The irony is fucking lost on you.”

Vagabond made a growling sound low in his throat.

“You are such a lucky bastard,” he sneered, “Lucky you managed to catch his eye, otherwise you would be dead.”

“Yeah, but at least I actually caught his eye,” Geoff sneered.

Vagabond’s jaw clenched and he gripped Geoff’s face tightly. His other hand pushed up, still gripping his collar.

“You got a death wish, Ramsey?” He growled.

“If I did,” Geoff grunted, “I’d provoke someone who’d actually kill me.”

The hand on his face tightened.

“Jeremy is the only thing between us right now,” Vagabond warned, “Our truce is temporary. As soon as this is over, your ass is mine.”

Geoff was extremely grateful that Vagabond stormed away from him back to Jeremy’s room. They were way to close together for him to hide the boner he popped at Vagabond’s choice of words. _Your ass is mine._ Geoff shuddered. _Jesus, I need to get laid. It’s been too long since Jeremy._ He dropped his head against the machine. _What the fuck am I doing? I’m too old for this shit._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Geoff trying to keep up with these whippersnappers. 
> 
> @1stworldmutant for more horny old men...wait.


	20. Chapter 20

Ryan checked his watch as Ramsey pulled up. He wasn’t late, but Ryan had been early, so he was annoyed he had to wait so long. Ramsey parked and made his way over. Ryan took notice of his lack of coat or the suit he normally wore.

He was in a T-shirt and jeans. He’d brought a duffle which Ryan assumed was the extra clothes he suggested they pack in case they needed to spend the night. Ryan popped the trunk for him and nervously started tapping the steering wheel. This whole thing was a bad idea. 

Ryan didn’t need a partner to watch his back. He was fine. (Jeremy shifted, accidentally pressing the gunshot wound and hissed in pain.) Ryan jolted and groaned, rubbing over the phantom wound. Ryan was going to strap the kid to an operating table so he couldn’t squirm.

“You mind if we stop by some place real quick?” Ramsey asked as he got in the car, “Shouldn’t take more than fifteen minutes.”

“Wow, what low stamina,” Ryan muttered, turning on the car and pulling out.

“You’re real funny,” Ramsey grumbled, “Turn left up here.”

They drove for three minutes until Ryan pulled into a cafe. _Doughnuts and coffee. What a stereotype._ Ryan wasn’t exactly looking forward to dealing with his car smelling like pig. Or being in a confined space with one. Specifically Ramsey. The guy riled him up. 

Geoff got out and hurried inside. He should’ve made breakfast or gotten it prior to meeting up, but he’d got distracted by Jeremy demanding to know what was going on. He’d sputtered out a noncommittal sort of answer and quietly edged out of the hospital room. Jeremy hadn’t been too happy.

“Welcome, what can I get you?” Leah asked tiredly from the other side of the counter, “Been awhile, cop.”

“Been busy, barista,” Geoff answered, “One of the caramel coffee. Er, caramel dream or something? And an assorted half dozen.”

He paused looking over his shoulder at Vagabond waiting in the car.

“Actually double all that,” He added, “Two caramel dreams and a dozen doughnuts.”

Leah repeated the order and collected the doughnuts while Tyler, the other employee on duty, mixed up the coffee. They gave him a drink carrier and he waved with it as he left. Vagabond frowned at him as he slid into the car. Geoff rolled his eyes and stuck the drinks in the cup holders.

“That’s for you,” He explained, tapping the cup closest to him, “Doughnut?”

Vagabond squinted at Geoff suspiciously. Geoff pulled out a doughnut and started eating it, letting Vagabond know it was safe. Vagabond took a doughnut as well and Geoff grinned at him, extremely pleased with himself. 

“The drink is Jeremy’s favorite,” he added, offering a straw.

Vagabond hesitated. But he eventually stuck the straw in the drink and sipped it. Geoff felt pretty good. Jeremy had been insisting they needed to try to be friends, so he was definitely winning on that front. No way Vagabond of all people was going to out-friendly him.

~

“You sure this is the right place?” Geoff whispered, “Looks totally abandoned.”

“Makes for a good hideout,” Vagabond grunted.

Geoff shrugged. _Whatever you say, man._ They crept across the abandoned factory, holding a bat and a fire ax. They searched for signs of life, but the place was dead, the corpse of something that once was. Geoff found himself relating to the place, full of broken parts and empty spaces that echoed hollowly. And of course, there was the excessive amount of graffiti.

“I think you got played,” Geoff muttered after they’d scoured that place, “No one’s here and it looks like no one has been for a while.”

Vagabond huffed in frustration and kicked the nearest destructible item. A chair, Geoff thought. _He’s holding a fire ax and he chose to **kick** the chair? _Vagabond sighed heavily.  The sound of a door opening echoed through the place. They dropped to a crouch, creeping closer to the noise.

“No, no one’s showed up,” Blitz’ voice spoke, “...I’m not doing it... because I have a half dozen broken bones, Pat! Pick someone else to be your fucking meat shield... Well, then find another way!”

Geoff glanced at Vagabond whose eyes certainly seemed to be filled with the same worry Geoff had. _Was Fitzpatrick going to try to escape?_ Vagabond started to move, but Geoff gripped his arm. He pulled his phone out and started recording. _Come on, Blitz, give us something we can use._

“Oh my god, man, you’re so dramatic,” Blitz grumbled, “Relax. It’s one less body to bury in stolen land...Dude, that’s disgusting. I don’t want to hear that.”

Geoff frowned. _Stolen land? What’s that about?_

“Alright, just calm down!” Blitz snapped, “Call Leadfoot. Tell her I vouch for you. And tell her 424, if she doubts you.”

_Leadfoot? Danni DeFranco? Is she out right now?_ Last Geoff heard she was in prison. She was a driver. So Fitzpatrick was going to try to escape when he got transported. 

“Yeah, I gotta go,” Blitz muttered, “I can’t stay above ground too long. They could track my phone.”

Geoff squinted at Vagabond who squinted back at him and shook his head. Blitz must’ve been paranoid then. He hung up and Geoff jerked his chin, signaling for Vagabond to go ahead.

Ryan stayed out of line of the camera as he moved up on the man. Blitz stiffened at his approach. Ryan let the ax drag on the ground for ominous effect. Vagabond was an extra son of a bitch. Blitz flicked the cigarette he’d lit and put his hands up. One of his hands was broken. Ryan smiled under the mask, almost sad he missed Jeremy kicking ass.

“Wh-What do you want?” Blitz sputtered, “I’ll tell you wh-whatever y-you want to know.”

“Oh, Billy,” Ryan cooed, overly sweet, “You led us into a trap. After we so graciously let you live. On your knees.”

Blitz dropped.

“I didn’t know!” He insisted, “I h-had no idea th-there was a trap! I really sent you there in g-good faith!”

Ryan spun the ax in his hand.

“But you _did_ know what he was doing,” he pointed out, “You were an accomplice to what he did.”

“I...I wasn’t _helping_ him do it,” he hissed.

“So since your dick wasn’t in him, you’re innocent?” Ryan sneered, “Since you didn’t hold him down, you weren’t involved?”

He rested the blunt side of the ax on Blitz’ shoulder. He really wanted to kill him. You don’t need to hold someone down to help them get raped. 

“Better give me something good,” he growled, “If you want to convince me not to kill you.”

Blitz made a strained noise. 

“The tr-trial,” he hissed through a clenched jaw, “It’s rigged. He’s g-got everything locked d-down. Th-the jury, the defense, everything’s rigged for him to win. A-and the evidence, he’s got someone in-inside going to destroy it. And all the witnesses, h-he has hits on them.”

Ramsey moved forward, coming to stand next to Ryan who turned to him.

“If he acts as a witness, I suppose he can live,” He commented lightly, hoisting the ax up onto his shoulder, “What do you think, pig?”

Ramsey threw him a glare, but played along.

“Well, not killing him before went badly for us,” he pointed out gruffly, “And he did take a fucking cattle prod to Dooley.”

“Excellent point,” Ryan answered, “Well, Billy, any last words?”

“Pl-please don’t! I-I’ll witness!” He pleaded, “A-and I know where-“

He was interrupted by a baseball bat to the temple knocking him out. Ryan rolled his eyes. _So impatient, Ramsey._

“What the hell does he need DeFranco for?!” Ramsey hissed, rubbing his forehead, “If he isn’t escaping, what does he need her for?!”

“Fuck if I know, I don’t know her,” Ryan answered, “We’ve gotta do something about these hits. If all the witnesses are gone, it’s Jeremy against the most well-connected rapist in the west.”

“You think you can pull influence?” Ramsey suggested, “Throw your name around?”

Ryan clicked his tongue, considering. He could make the suggestion that if the hits went through, the Vagabond would be displeased.

“Yeah, I can make waves,” He muttered, “But what about this connect still inside the pigpen?” 

Ramsey rolled his eyes.

“Could be anyone,” he huffed, “Well, not _anyone,_ but certainly it could be a lot of people.”

He moved over, grabbing his cuffs from his belt to restrain the guy before he woke up. 

“Any particular suspects come to mind?” Ryan questioned.

His eyes trailed down as Ramsey bent over in front of him to cuff Blitz. _It’s stuffy in here, isn’t it? Slightly warm._

“Well, I have a few and I can ask around,” Ramsey suggested, “Hopefully someone knows about that stolen land he was talking about as well.”

Ryan frowned. 

“You mean Tierra Robada?” He grunted.

The cuffs clicked and Ramsey looked over his shoulder at him with a frown. 

“What’s Tierra Robada got to do with this?” He grumbled.

“Means “stolen land” in Spanish,” Ryan answered, a bit smug he knew something Ramsey didn’t, “Blitz, like most Hispanic criminals in San Andreas, calls it Stolen Land for that reason.”

Ramsey straightened back up, turning fully towards him.

“So we got a mole, hits, bodies, and a trial,” he muttered, rubbing his face tiredly, “So glad we found Blitz to get all these new problems.”

“What are we going to do with him?” Ryan asked, jerking his chin at Blitz, “No offense, but I don’t exactly trust pigs right now. Or ever really.”

“Yeah, and lord knows _you_ don’t have any trusted associates,” Ramsey hissed at him, “I guess we can keep a hold of him for now.”

“I’ve got a safe house we can stay in for today while we figure out what to do with him,” Ryan added, choosing to ignore the comment. 

Geoff watched in awe as Vagabond scooped Blitz up and hoisted him up onto one shoulder. _Holy shit, he’s strong._

“Hopefully he doesn’t have fucking brain damage,” he threw over the other shoulder.

He moved towards the entrance and Geoff did stick out his tongue this time. _Nyeh! Dickbag._ Geoff was the absolute picture of maturity.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ✨Ramsey and the Vagabond coming to a theater near you~!✨
> 
> @1stworldmutant for more “subtle” sexual themes.


	21. Chapter 21

Ryan flipped a knife as he stared at Blitz. Blitz was not happy about it. He was watching the knife with a wary eye. Clearly he was not thrilled with his position. Ryan wasn’t either. He wanted to start slicing off parts until the man died of shock or blood loss.

_Wasn’t helping him do it._ What a fucking joke. Enabling a rapist, helping him get away with his crimes, sticking a cattle prod in the escaping victim. He deserved to die. Ryan’s hand paused, holding the knife steady. He tilted his head, thinking. Ramsey would probably believe it was self defense if he uncuffed the guy. 

No, he couldn’t. He started flipping the knife again. If he killed him, that was one less witness. Jeremy was going to need all the help he could get. Ryan wasn’t sure why he bothered going through the so called “justice” system. Ryan could probably kill him pretty easily after figuring out where he was. But Jeremy had insisted they had to do it this way. With everything against him, how was he going to win?

“Vagabond, a word?” Ramsey called into the room.

Ryan stood and walked out, putting the knife away. Better not have a weapon out when he talked to Ramsey. Didn’t want to stab him before he helped Jeremy. He was technically a witness. And had a hit on him as well. He considered collecting the money himself as Ramsey handed him a coffee. _Why must you torture me, pig?_ They walked down the hall a bit and Ramsey took a drink of his own coffee before speaking.

“Michael’s got the evidence buried,” he muttered, “I got word to them that the jury’s compromised.”

“Word is spreading about the hits,” Ryan provided in return, “And I’ve got a lead for Leadfoot. She’s here, actually, if the lead is correct.”

He resisted the urge to drink the coffee, knowing he wasn’t going to like it. At least Jeremy’s drink had been filled with sugar.

“I got pizza,” Ramsey added, “Hope you’re not a fucking vegan.”

Ryan snorted as he followed Ramsey to the dining table. He pulled off his mask and jacket as he dropped into the chair. He tugged his hair out of the tie, fluffing it a bit and letting it fall over one shoulder. He rubbed his face tiredly, avoiding his painted eyes. Ramsey pushed a bottle of pain killers at him. He hesitated a moment before taking them. 

_This is weird,_ he thought. Eating pizza with a pig. Doing _anything_ with a pig. In the lull of action, silence was oppressive like a heated blanket. Ramsey was shifting a lot, talking his fingers and kept opening his mouth to speak, only to close it again. _He wants to know something, but he thinks it’ll upset me. He wants to know about that night._

“Vagab-“

“He’s dead,” Ryan interrupted, quietly, “The man who killed your soulmate is dead.”

Ramsey frowned, looking a bit confused. He went quiet a moment.

“That’s...not what I was going to ask,” he muttered.

Ryan looked at him sharply.

“Then what were you going to ask?” He prompted.

Ramsey rubbed the back of his neck.

“Vagabond changed,” he spoke quietly, “Some time after _that_ incident. It was like he was a whole different person. I kept ignoring it because I was convinced you killed her. But Vagabond changed his MO. He stopped sexually assaulting people and-“

“People?” Ryan interrupted, spine stiffening, “He hurt others in this area?”

Ramsey looked him in the eye.

So it wasn’t you,” he concluded, “Someone came before you, someone else had your name.”

Ryan snorted. _You have no idea, Ramsey._

“Yes, but you didn’t answer my question,” He pointed out.

Geoff swallowed, his throat clicking dryly. There had been five assaults prior to the incident that Vagabond was the suspect for. However, now that Geoff knew they weren’t the same, he was pretty sure any number of unsolved cases could be attributed to Vagabond Senior. He debated on saying anything. 

He recalled his words on Katie’s death. _It’s not like I’m a good person, it was just my responsibility!_ He really didn’t need to know that he hadn’t been able to save others. But Geoff’s silence spoke as loud as words. Vagabond stood abruptly, kicking his chair across the room. 

“How many?” He whispered.

“I d-don’t think-“ Geoff started.

Vagabond whirled on him and seized his shirt. He yanked him from his chair and slammed him against the closest wall.

“How many?!” He shouted.

Geoff grunted as he was forced up onto his toes. 

“Five s-suspected cases,” He muttered.

Vagabond paled, his grip on Geoff changing from restrictive to desperate. It was like he was falling and needed Geoff to stay stable. Without thinking or hesitating, Geoff wrapped his arms around him tightly.

“I-I’m sorry,” he mumbled, “I shouldn’t have brought this up. I’m sorry.”

“Shut up!” Vagabond screamed at him, “Get off me! I don’t need your fucking pity!”

He shoved Geoff’s arms off him.

“I’m trying to be supportive!” Geoff snapped, “You know, like a friend would!”

Vagabond grabbed his face, shoving his head into the wall.

“I am not your friend, pig,” he snarled, “I don’t need your fucking support.”

“Oh, because you’ve been doing _so_ well on your own?” Geoff sneered.

He winced as the grip on his face got tighter. Vagabond leaned in closely.

“You really wanna find out if I’ll kill you, don’t you?” He growled, “Wanna know if I’ll snap and destroy you, is that it? Wanna see how far you can push the Vagabond before I decide Jeremy not crying isn’t worth what a pain in the ass you are?”

“You aren’t going to kill me,” Geoff hissed, “You never were. From the first time we had a proper showdown.”

He gripped Vagabond’s hand and pressed it over the GSW scar on his ribs. He shoved his own fingers against the matching one on Vagabond. Vagabond glared down at him, pressing his fingers into the scar, feeling it through his shirt. 

“We both aimed to miss a death shot,” Geoff grit out through his teeth, “Even then we never actually wanted to kill each other. So fuck me up, throw me around if it makes you feel better, but don’t throw empty threats around. It’s beneath you.”

Vagabond’s eyes were like blue fire. _Frigid._ So freezing cold it burned through Geoff. He stepped closer, pressing his fingers painfully hard against the scar under them. They were silent a moment, staring into each other’s eyes. _Defiance,_ Geoff thought, _that’s what those beautiful blues are filled with._

Something suddenly broke. Nothing happened to cause it. Other than the build up of 15 years of chasing each other. There was no particular reason why this was the exact moment the dam broke. But it did and they surged towards one another like two floods of water crashing into each other.

~

Jeremy jolted awake to the feeling of Geoff kissing him. He grunted in annoyance, lifting a hand to bat him away, but landed on nothing but air. He frowned, sitting up and looking around in confusion. He hissed as Geoff nipped his tongue. _What the fuck?_

He rubbed his eyes, trying to wake himself up. _What’s happening?_ He touched his mouth. _Ah, fuck!_ He grunted as Geoff’s teeth knocked his. _This is definitely Geoff, but how-?_ Jeremy went crimson as he realized exactly how. 

_Geoff’s making out with Ryan. Holy shit._ He considered it a moment as Geoff’s mouth attempted to eat his. _Who’s going to top? Should I be more upset by this?_ He shrugged. His life was already fucking insane, so it didn’t really matter. _No, but seriously, who’s going to top?_

~

Ryan groaned into Ramsey’s mouth as their hands wrapped around each other’s dicks. God, he was horny. It’d been too fucking long. He shoved his hand up Ramsey’s shirt to press his fingers to the scar. _I made that. He shuddered, hips jerking._

His hand roamed over Ramsey’s skin. _He’s covered in my marks. He belongs to me._ The thought had Ryan’s hand speed up. Ramsey, a detective who kicked ass and looked great doing it, was compliant in his hands. 

He probably didn’t even realize just how compliant. His legs were spreading, subconsciously giving Ryan more access. His head was tilting to the side, giving Ryan room to mark up his neck. _Jesus, if he could not eat my face though, that would be nice._ Ryan could taste his own blood in his mouth from the man biting at his lips.

Ryan pulled back and shoved Ramsey’s shirt up. He bit down on it naturally when Ryan lifted it to his mouth. Ryan smirked a little at Ramsey’s red-faced squirming. _Falling apart. How cute._ He bent his head, putting his lips over one of his nipples and sucking it into his mouth. Ramsey jolted and let out a muffled moan around the fabric in his mouth. 

“Ha, you’re such a girl,” Ryan teased, moving to the other nipple, “Like your tits being played with, Ramsey?”

Ramsey groaned, head falling back. He was struggling to focus on jerking Ryan off, but Ryan wasn’t complaining. He looked amazing like this. Red all over, biting his shirt, legs open. Every part of Ryan ached to fuck him. He didn’t do that, what he did instead was mouth at all his marks all over his torso. Ramsey let out a whiny sort of growl as he got close, body tensing up in anticipation. Ryan stood back straight, putting his lips to his ear.

“What do you say when you want something, Ramsey?” He whispered lowly.

Ramsey whined again and Ryan tugged the shirt from his mouth.

“P-p-please!” He cried.

“What a good little pig,” Ryan cooed.

His hand tightened and his pace picked up. It didn’t take long after that for Ramsey to cum, growling as his body jerked into Ryan’s grip. His own grip tightened on Ryan who grunted. He grabbed Ramsey’s hand and jerked it back and forth, now suddenly desperate to get off. 

“Ffffuck,” he groaned in Ramsey’s ear, “You’re almost bearable when you’re like this, Ramsey.”

Ramsey huffed annoyance and shoved at him. Ryan scowled as he stepped back. _Damnit. I pissed him off, now I’m not gonna get off._ He opened his mouth to apologize, but was interrupted by Ramsey sinking to his knees. He shot a glare up at him and Ryan’s dick twitched. _Oh, that’s definitely not a healthy response._

Ramsey’s lips closed around him and his knees almost gave out. His tongue flicked over where precum was dripping from him and Ryan swore under his breath. He braced one hand on the wall and the other held the back of Ramsey’s head. His kisses were all teeth, hiding the fact that his tongue was amazing. Ryan moaned as it swirled around him, rubbed up and down his shaft and curled under him as Ramsey slowly eased his cock into his throat. 

“Ffffucking Christ alive, you’re good at this,” he huffed, “Jesus, if I’d known h-how good, fuck, g-good you are on y-your knees, unh, I-I would’ve been shooting my dick instead. Holy f-fuck.”

Ramsey snorted at him and Ryan just hissed at him to shut up. He started moving, one hand around Ryan’s dick while the other held onto his jeans. He bobbed, moving his hand and mouth in sync. Ryan panted as he tightened up and his hand shoved Ramsey’s head down to shoot down his throat. He moaned loudly as he came, hips rutting into Ramsey’s face a few times before he stilled. 

Geoff shoved Vagabond away, gagging at the taste of jizz.

“Asshole,” He rasped, moving to get a drink of his coffee.

Vagabond laughed breathlessly as he found a seat to slump into. Geoff smirked at the boneless nature of his slump. Vagabond threw his arm over his eyes as he caught his breath. 

“How’s _that_ for almost bearable?” Geoff sneered.

Vagabond laughed again, less breathless.

“Pretty good,” he admitted, “Certainly better than I expected with how you mauled my mouth.”

“Hmph, well, you seemed to like that too,” Geoff scoffed, “You’re very handsy.”

“Most people are when getting attacked by a bear,” Vagabond joked.

Geoff snorted, almost spitting out coffee in his sudden laughter. Vagabond grinned triumphantly, lifting his arm to look at him and Geoff just rolled his eyes. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And thus was born the promised smut.
> 
> @1stworldmutant to see my failures in life.


	22. Chapter 22

“Hey, Danni, long time no see,” Geoff greeted cheerfully, “Got a couple questions for you. Don’t worry, I’m not here in an official capacity.”

DeFranco looked like she knew exactly why he was there. 

“Listen, I told him no!” She hurried to explain, “I’m not getting in on that. Vagabond’s all over that job, I’m staying out of it.”

It sounded like no one knew Geoff and Vagabond were working together. That could certainly work to their advantage. 

“Vagabond’s all over the job?” Geoff prompted, frowning, “What do you mean?”

She hesitated, glancing around the bar before leaning in.

“It’s everywhere,” She muttered, “Buzz all over is that Vagabond’s claimed that fresh pork and is after the dirty one, Pat. I ain’t sayin’ shit else. I don’t need to wake up with a slit throat.”

“What did Pat want you for?” Geoff asked, “I heard he was rigging the trial, so why’s he need an escape?”

She raised an eyebrow at him.

“You’re fuckin’ crazy if you think I’m gonna tell you that,” she scoffed.

“I really need that info, DeFranco,” he growled, “How much?”

“More than your fuckin’ cop salary,” she hissed, “I really need my throat intact. Give me five and I’ll tell you what type of job it was, but that’s it.”

He scowled at her, but handed off the five hundred.

“Delivery,” She grunted, “Now clear off before people start talkin’.”

_Delivery? Of what?_ He sighed heavily and gave her a two finger salute as he got up.

“Oh, one more thing,” He added lightly.

He seized her bicep tightly and bent to put his mouth near her ear.

”If you ever call my partner pork again,” He whispered, “You will be fresh meat yourself.”

She swallowed and nodded nervously.

”G-got it,” she mumbled.

He pulled away from her and gave a pleasant smile.

”Well, stay safe then,” he chirped.

”I might actually do that this time,” she muttered.

_Not fucking likely,_ Geoff thought dryly as he made his way outside. Well, he had a tail and he was completely exhausted. Seemed like a great time for some coffee. 

~

Ryan’s new favorite pastime was making Blitz squirm. Watching him, though, he began to notice something. The way Blitz squirmed when Ryan got close, eyes always darting around, jaw clenched tightly. He was hiding something important. Something worse than everything else. Something he really didn’t want to give up. He was searching Ryan too, trying to see if he knew what it was yet, while doing his best not to be obvious about it. 

What would the pig detective do in this situation? He’d probably ask questions. Pigs loved questions. He’d recall whatever loose ends there still were. Bitch about something totally inane and pointless. Something Ryan would deem unimportant. Ryan tried to rewind his mind over their previous interactions with Blitz. 

_Stolen Land._ Ramsey hadn’t known what that meant. He’d latched onto it, intending to get info on private stolen property no doubt. Tierra Robada was a massive desert though. They’d never find the bodies without at least some form of a hint.

_Ah._ Blitz knew where they were. However, now that he believed himself unkillable, he wasn’t going to give up the information easily. He knew he could get arrested for being an accomplice. They’d made him sound important now, so he knew they wouldn’t kill him. They couldn’t bluff that they would.

The bluff they needed now was immunity. Ryan could try it, but was unsure he could pull it off effectively. Ramsey would be the one for this. He’d talk to him about it when he got back. He wondered how he was doing with the driver. Wondered when he’d get back. Wondered why he cared so damn much. His dick twitched, reminding him. _Quiet, you!_

~

Geoff sipped his coffee while he checked out the tail. He didn’t recognize them and was pretty confident he didn’t know them. They had a massive scar that ripped across their face that started at the corner of one eye and ended below their bottom lip. He figured he’d probably remember such an obvious feature. 

They were quite professional, keeping their eyes away from staring too much and staying a good distance from him. If not for the scar, Geoff may not have noticed them. They were clearly unafraid of the Vagabond as well, certainly implying they had confidence in their own abilities. Geoff decided to text the Vagabond, unsure if he could fight the person without backup.

To Pima: _You know a hitman with a massive scar on their face?_

Pima: _Please don’t tell me you’re being tailed by them._

To Pima: _Alright, I won’t tell you._

Pima: _Smartass. Send me the address._

Geoff relaxed a bit, glad to have back up. He blushed, actually blushed as he recalled the previous night’s activities. He was seriously too old to be blushing about sex. He was too old to be worried that the guy he liked would find out he fucked someone else. He was a grown man, not a fucking high-schooler. He was glad Vagabond was treating it so casually, otherwise he may have had a meltdown. 

_Speak of the devil._ Geoff eyed the man signaling him to come outside. He finished the last of his coffee, doing so in a relaxed manner, hoping he looked normal instead of freaked out. He’d had hits on him before, but none so good the Vagabond didn’t scare them. Nor any that the Vagabond felt the need to rescue him from.

He tossed his cup and walked outside. Vagabond was leaned against the building next door. He jerked his head down the alley between the buildings and Geoff grasped that they were setting up an ambush. Vagabond moved out of sight and Geoff lit a cigarette while he waited for the tail to follow him. He moved down the alley when they appeared. 

They seemed to be taking the isolation bait and crept towards him. Too late they realized their mistake. The tiny gasp they let out before their mouth was covered and their throat slit was the last noise they made. Geoff shuddered, not looking forward to turning around as he heard their limp body hit the ground. He did so anyway, wincing a bit at the amount of blood all over the place. _Urg._

“You owe me a life debt now, piggy,” Vagabond teased as he bent to check the hitman’s pockets.

“Um, fuck you?” Geoff offered.

“I mean, I’m usually against public sex, Ramsey,” Vagabond answered smoothly, “But I’ll make an exception since your tongue is so delightful.”

He looked up at Geoff who blushed red. _He’s got the biggest shit-eating grin on under that fucking mask._ He winked at Geoff, further worsening his blush.

“You’re an asshole,” he grumbled.

“Yep!” Vagabond confirmed cheerfully, “Anyway, this was good actually. Now there’s proof I’m not fucking around.”

He turned back to their pockets and Geoff walked over to crouch next to the body. He wondered suddenly if they had a soulmate. He wondered if someone else had felt when that scar was made. He rubbed over his ribs where the scar that matched Vagabond’s laid. It was sort of like they were connected by the wound. Like they were soulmates that had felt the same pain. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yooooo. Sorry it’s late again. BUT hopefully, you guys will be cool with it when the new fic I’m working on comes out. ;P
> 
> @1stworldmutant for more excuses.


	23. Chapter 23

Geoff rubbed his face tiredly as he left the room Blitz was in. Vagabond stopped mid-pacing and came to his side.

“Well?” He prompted.

Geoff shot him an annoyed look.

“Patience is a virtue, Vagabond,” he grumbled.

He moved to walk around him to get himself some coffee, but Vagabond’s arm came out, hand bracing against the wall. Geoff could probably duck under the arm or try the other way, but he was too tired to deal with it.

“Jeremy’s life depends on this,” Vagabond reminded him in a growl, “Or have you forgotten what this is for?”

Geoff couldn’t stop the rage that rose or the hand that flew across Vagabond’s face. 

“How dare you?!” He shouted at him, “You think I would be here for any other fucking reason?! Don’t flatter yourself.”

Ryan stared to the side where the blow had forced his head. _Did this motherfucker just slap me? Then imply I was talking about **that?!** _He could feel the burn of rage well up inside him as he turned his head back to Ramsey. Ramsey didn’t shrink from his gaze. Ryan’s hand snapped out, grabbing his throat and shoving him against the wall.

“You really think that was about us fucking?” He growled, “I’m trying to remind your pig brain that _we_ are not partners. I am the Vagabond, you are Detective Ramsey. When I ask a fucking question, I expect it answered.”

“In what part of the last fifteen years, have I _ever_ made you expect that?” Ramsey asked dryly, “You and your questions can kiss my fucking ass.”

Ryan legitimately wasn’t sure if he wanted to kiss or kill him. Before he could figure it out, Ramsey’s phone rang. He answered it, apparently not caring that Ryan was still holding his throat.

“Hello, Jeremy,” Ramsey greeted, looking directly into Ryan’s eyes, “A soul trigger? Well, he’s right here, maybe he could tell you.”

Ryan’s eyes narrowed and Ramsey smirked at him as he put the phone to Ryan’s ear.

“Jeremy,” Ryan mumbled.

“Ry, are you okay?” Jeremy’s concerned voice asked.

Ryan dropped his hold on Ramsey and grabbed the phone with both hands. His heart was pounding in his chest.

“Y-you called me-that’s-that’s a nickname!” He exclaimed.

“Er, yeah, I guess so?” Jeremy muttered, “Should I not-?”

“N-no!” Ryan hastened to answer, “I-I mean, of course you can call me that!”

He blushed as he remembered Ramsey was there. It’d been fifteen years since someone called him by his name, but even then, he was never called by a nickname. Well, not a nice one anyway.

“A-Anyway, I’m fine,” He sputtered, “How’re you doing? Did you get the stuff I sent?”

“Yes, Ray came by,” Jeremy assured him, “He’s pretty nice. Thanks for the chocolate. Hey, Ry, will you answer a question for me, please?”

Ryan’s heart thundered in his chest. _Ry. Ry. Ry._

“S-sure! Y-yes!” He sputtered, “Whatever you want.”

“How’s the investigation going, darling?” Jeremy asked, voice like honey.

_Darling. Darling!_ Ryan was suddenly filled with the desire to please him, give him whatever he wanted, spoil him, make his honey voice praise him.

“Good, it’s good,” He quickly assured him, “We’re almost done, I think. Ramsey probably got the location of the bodies. And I saved his life today.”

A grunt of frustration sounded from behind him and Ryan frowned at Ramsey. 

“Ry, sweetheart, I’m very happy to hear that,” Jeremy answered, “You’ve been great. Thank you so much.”

Geoff watched Vagabond brighten significantly. _If he was a dog, his tail would be wagging like crazy._ He could only assume Jeremy had called him a good boy. 

“I-I love you too,” He muttered, blushing again, “O-okay. He’s still here.”

He held Geoff’s phone back out to him, still pink-faced and smiling dreamily. Geoff sighed heavily and put the phone to his ear.

“Hey, Jer, what’s-“

“Geoff Ramsey!” Jeremy snarled, “You are in so much fucking trouble!”

Geoff winced.

“Yeah, I had a feeling,” He grumbled.

“What’s this about bodies?!” Jeremy demanded, “And he saved your life?! Why was your life in danger?! Ramsey, tell me everything, right now!”

Geoff explained everything, recalling all they’d learned and everything they were still trying to learn. He added that he had gotten the location of the bodies with a pointed look at Vagabond who was not looking pleased. He was apparently also mad that Geoff hadn’t been keeping Jeremy updated. 

“Geoff, why the fuck didn’t you tell me any of this?!” Jeremy demanded, “Don’t you think I should know all this about my case?! Oh god. That’s why they put that fucking freshman prosecutor on the case! Kid nearly threw up just looking at me.”

“That’s not exactly unusual,” Geoff scoffed, rubbing at his tired eyes, “I nearly threw up looking at you.”

“Fair point,” Jeremy muttered, with a sigh, “It’s hopeless...isn’t it?”

“This is why I didn’t want to tell you,” Geoff admitted, “I wanted to be able to know for sure that it was going to work out. I wanted to give you a confident answer. Right now, the odds are looking much better, but they’re still not a 100%.”

Jeremy was quiet a long time. Geoff started to get worried he’d really, truly fucked up.

“We...have a plan b, right Geoff?” Jeremy finally spoke, quiet and somber. 

“Yes, of course,” Geoff answered immediately, “Your soulmate especially has that covered. Either way it’s sliced, he won’t be hurting anyone else.”

Jeremy let out a relieved puff of air. He wasn’t sure he could live with himself if anyone else was forced through the same as him. He shuddered, suddenly feeling like he was in that basement again. _Alone. Cold. Tired._

“Jer? What do you need?” Geoff spoke up, “Whatever it is, I’ll do it.”

Jeremy laughed bitterly.

“Idiot,” he murmured, “You’re doing it already. You’re fighting for me. I don’t think you understand how much it means to me to have people in my corner. Especially you, Geoff.”

“Me? Why me?” Geoff grumbled, “It’s not like it took much convincing.”

“Didn’t it though?” Jeremy countered, “I had to end up in serious trouble for you to realize you had a more active interest in me.”

Geoff clicked his tongue, but didn’t deny it.

“Hey, Geoff?” Jeremy called softly into the phone.

“Yes, Jeremy?” 

“I think...I think I love you too,” he mumbled, “I love both of you. When this is over, we should all really talk about it.”

“Yeah, that’s for sure,” Geoff agreed, “We really need to be adults about this.”

“I should hope we’re adults about it,” Jeremy grumbled, “Considering you attacked his mouth last night.”

Geoff’s spine stiffened.

“Right...soul trigger,” he muttered under his breath, “So are you... upset?”

Vagabond was squinting at him suspiciously. 

“No, but hey, you bottomed, right?” Jeremy countered.

Geoff went red all over.

“W-we didn’t-!” He sputtered, “Wh-Why would you a-assume that?!”

“Because I didn’t feel you fucking him,” Jeremy answered dryly, “And you never makeout without getting off.”

“W-well we d-did, b-but not like-“ Geoff stammered, “Wh-Whatever, I sh-should go! I’m tired and you’re recovering!”

Jeremy laughed at him as they said goodbye.

“What the fuck was that about?” Vagabond grunted.

“Jeremy felt us making out,” Geoff groaned miserably, covering his burning face.

“Ha! Because you tried to eat my face!” Vagabond laughed.

Geoff lowered his hands to glare at him, but Vagabond just grinned. His mood swings were going to take some getting used to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We’re nearing the finish line, dudes. 
> 
> @1stworldmutant for more finishing. ;P


	24. Chapter 24

Jeremy was freezing. It was cold, so fucking cold. Why was it so damn cold?! His naked body was curled up, but it didn’t matter how tightly he curled, he was still freezing. He was shaking, teeth chattering as he desperately curled in on himself, trying to warm up. 

“Hello, little fly,” Fitzpatrick cooed at him, “I can warm you up nicely. Would you like that?”

Jeremy whimpered as the man’s hands ran over him. He tried to pull away only to have the hands clamp down on him. He was pushed around, flattened onto his stomach and he sobbed as pain pulsed through him.

“P-please! Please st-stop!” He cried, “Stop! Stop! Please!!”

Fitzpatrick laughed at him. 

“STOP!” Jeremy screamed as he suddenly sat bolt-upright.

He blinked blearily, groggily trying to remember what the fuck was going on. A nurse came in to check on him and he relaxed a bit. _Right. Hospital._

“Another nightmare?” The nurse asked softly, sympathy in their eyes.

“Y-yeah,” he muttered, “I’m fine.”

They gave him a sad sort of smile before checking his vitals and leaving him. He curled up, wrapping his arms around his legs and resting his head on his knees. His body ached. Everything hurt and he wanted it to be over. He stared out the window, mind going blissfully blank for a moment. 

He knew he should be taking the pain meds for Ryan’s sake, but he preferred the pain. It was comforting. He knew for sure he was alive because he was in pain. Not to mention it was so familiar now. Pain was like a heavy coat in winter, even though it was heavy and restrictive, it was warm and beat back the cold threatening to overwhelm him.

“I swear to Christ, George!” Ryan’s voice shouted down the hall, “We do this every time! Get out of my way!”

Jeremy perked up a bit, smiling fondly. 

“Jeremy, will you tell this pest to fuck off?!” Ryan grumbled as he made it to the door, “I don’t give a fuck about visiting hours.”

Jeremy chuckled and waved George off. George shook his head disapprovingly, but tottered off. Ryan came to Jeremy’s side and brushed a hand through his hair. He looked so worried. Jeremy tried to smile, but his lips barely lifted as he suddenly started sobbing. Ryan sat on the bed and wrapped his arms around him. Jeremy held on tightly to the back of Ryan’s jacket, face buried in his neck.

“I’ve got you,” Ryan whispered, “You’ll never be alone again.”

Jeremy only cried harder and squeezed tighter. _How did you even know I needed you?_

~

Geoff paced anxiously, arms crossed. _Delivery._ Bombs? Maybe Vagabond’s block on the hits made him decide to go with a more direct approach? Possible, but bombs were pretty risky. Fitzpatrick didn’t strike him as a type to take risks. He seemed more calm and calculating than that.

Death threats, maybe? Trying to keep out anyone who might throw a wrench in his carefully laid out plans? Payments? No, no one had been killed yet. _Delivery, delivery, delivery._ The word started to sound weird and he sighed, rubbing a hand over his tired face. 

At least they were back in LS and he didn’t have to watch Blitz any more. They’d found the bodies, right where he said they’d be and in exchange, he was going to get life in prison. Geoff never said his word ever meant anything. He’d blatantly lied to the man, but he didn’t care. He’d stuck a cattle prod in Jeremy’s guts. Geoff was more than happy to deliver him straight to prison himself. 

_Deliver. Delivery! Not an object, a person!_ Fitzpatrick was planning to deliver Jeremy! Of course! Jeremy couldn’t show up to the trial. Any juror who saw the angry red lines all over him would be swayed. He looked bad, obviously tortured. Fitzpatrick was going to try to kidnap him and have him delivered to a safe location. Which sort of explained why DeFranco had called Jeremy fresh pork: she’d been asked to deliver Jeremy like a package of meat. 

Geoff hurriedly grabbed his coat, shrugging it on as he pulled out his phone. He quickly called Jeremy on his way out the door. Time was running out, Fitzpatrick would have to strike soon. They only had a few days left before the trial.

~

Jeremy’s phone started ringing, but Ryan muted the call and continued rubbing his back and pressing kisses in his hair. Then his phone rang. He frowned as Stupid Pig appeared on his screen. _He called Jeremy and then immediately me?_ He answered the phone.

“Hello?” He mumbled, trying not to disturb Jeremy.

“Please tell me you’re with Jeremy right now!” Ramsey blurted.

“Er, yeah, I’m with him,” Ryan confirmed, “What’s going on?”

“I figured it out,” Ramsey explained, “The delivery is _Jeremy._ He’s hired someone to snatch him and was going to have DeFranco transport him somewhere. Get him out of the hospital. It’s too risky to leave him there.”

He carefully moved away from Jeremy to grab his clothes and hand them over. Jeremy had already stopped crying and was confused, but started pulling his jeans on. Pain was pulsing through Ryan’s body as Jeremy’s sores protested being bothered by his clothes. 

“Understood, we’re moving,” Ryan answered, “I’ll send you a safe place to meetup. But be careful-“

Ryan stopped as he heard Ramsey’s car turnover.

“Get out of that car!” He shouted, “Get away from it!”

There was a pause then an explosion. Jeremy pulled his IV out and pulled off the heart rate monitor.

“Jesus Christ,” Ramsey muttered, “Well, fuck. I’ll have to take the squad car I guess.”

Jeremy was fully dressed now, hurriedly yanking his shoes on.

“No, too risky,” Ryan muttered, “I’m sending you an address. Go there, open the garage door with 0312. Keys are by the door into the house.”

A nurse showed up and Jeremy quickly explained they needed to leave. 

“Got it,” Ramsey grunted, “Alright, be careful.”

“You too,” Ryan said in return.

They ended the call and Ryan took Jeremy’s hand to drag him from the place. He made sure George wasn’t watching before they slipped into the hallway. Ryan typed out the two addresses as they moved towards the stairwell. He hesitated a moment. 

_That is my house. Should I really tell him my address?_ He scowled, debating about whether he trusted the man after such a short period of time. After all, they hadn’t been on good terms until very recently. And Ramsey was still a stupid, pain in the ass pig.

He sent the message.

~

Ryan checked his watch, eyes flicking to the door nervously. They were in his best, most discreet safe house, but it’d been half an hour and Ramsey hadn’t showed yet. Jeremy shifted on his lap, letting out a tiny distressed noise in his sleep. Ryan ran his hand through his hair and held him a bit closer. Jeremy relaxed a bit and so did Ryan. He relaxed further as Ramsey opened the door.

“You guys okay?” He muttered, locking the door.

Ryan nodded as Ramsey walked towards them.

“We slipped out before anyone could notice,” he assured him.

“Thank god,” Ramsey sighed, “I was worried and I had to keep dodging tails to get here.”

He ran a hand through Jeremy’s hair, pausing as their fingers touched. They stared at each other a moment before Ramsey bent down and kissed his mouth. Ryan blushed red and Ramsey grinned at him.

“You’re cute sometimes, Vagabond,” he laughed.

_Ryan,_ he suddenly wanted to tell him. 

“This is so gay,” Jeremy grumbled, shifting around again, “I’m trying to sleep, ya fuckin gays.”

Ryan laughed, squeezing him and wincing as he did so. _Right. Covered in injuries._ Ryan would be lying if he said he would prefer the trial over just torture-killing the man that made Jeremy hurt. Ramsey squeezed his shoulder as Jeremy started to drift off again.

“Don’t worry,” He muttered, “Think plan b might be DLC to plan a.”

Ryan raised his eyebrows in surprise. Ramsey wanted to win the trial _and_ kill Fitzpatrick. He was running his hand through Jeremy’s hair again, smiling softly at him. Ryan felt a sudden bizarre rush of affection for the man and the desire to be touched the way he touched Jeremy. Gentle, caring. Face burning, he tugged his hair tie from his hair and fluffed his hair a bit, pulling it over one shoulder. 

Ramsey smiled at him and sat down, putting Jeremy’s legs over his lap and his arm around Ryan’s shoulders. He pulled Ryan’s head to his shoulder and ran his fingers through his hair. Ryan closed his eyes and relaxed against him. He smelled like coffee and smoke like most pigs, but just then he was okay with it. Later he’d probably be pissed off, but the day had been a bit stressful. Only a bit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Forgot to put a note up, but tbh, what can I say? It’s all coming to a close soon. The plan is to have chapter 25 be the end, but I may end up doing more. We’ll see. ^_^’
> 
> @1stworldmutant to follow a trail to find out how to help me out. :D


	25. Chapter 25

“Not guilty.”

Jeremy’s hands shook and he stared wide-eyed and white-faced. _Not guilty._ Had two words ever been so terrible? _Not guilty._ It was cold, freezing. Was he dying? _Not guilty._ People were moving him, jostling him around. _Not guilty._ He was going to go free. He was going to hurt more people. _Not guilty._

“Jer?” Geoff whispered, “Don’t worry. It’s going to be okay.”

Jeremy looked at him blankly.

“Can we go home now?” He mumbled.

“Yes, of course,” Geoff assured him.

He took Jeremy’s hand and guided him to the squad car. Jeremy slid in, completely silent as they drove. 

_Not guilty._

~

Geoff led Jeremy to the bedroom before going to the living room where Vagabond was anxiously pacing. He turned as Geoff entered. It was pretty clear that they hadn’t won. Vagabond sat down on the couch and dropped his head on his hands.

“We had so much evidence and so many witnesses,” he grumbled, “We had the bodies and the properties. We had everything!”

He stood and kicked the coffee table over.

“What is the deal with you and kicking stuff?” Geoff asked, too tired to wonder why that was important. 

Vagabond stiffened, back facing him.

“You can’t punch anything if your arms are tied behind your back,” he muttered, “I spent a lot of my childhood restrained.”

“Childhood...was the Vagabond your guardian?” Geoff wondered.

“My father, yes,” Vagabond answered.

“Oh,” Geoff grunted, “Sorry for prying.”

“It’s fine,” Vagabond muttered, “You’d have sleuthed your way to it eventually anyway.”

“Um, anyway, I think you should cuddle Jeremy,” Geoff pushed on, “Seems like you help with the nightmares.”

Vagabond turned to frown at him.

“So do you,” he pointed out.

Geoff wasn’t sure about that, but he didn’t bother arguing.

“Then we’ll both cuddle him,” he suggested, moving towards the bedroom, “Double dreamcatcher.” 

Vagabond snorted.

~

Jeremy stretched his back and groaned in relief when it popped. _Getting old, I’m catching up with Geoff. Speak of the devil._ Geoff slumped over the back of his chair, resting his chin on Jeremy’s head. His arms crossed over Jeremy’s chest.

“Time to go, Dooley,” he announced.

“I’m almost done, I promise,” Jeremy assured him, “See? Just a few more fields.”

Geoff made an annoyed sound, but released him to finish his work.

“Better hurry,” he grumbled, “We have a hot date.”

Jeremy brightened up.

“Ry’s back?” He asked excitedly.

“Yep, he just texted me,” Geoff confirmed, “He probably texted you too.”

“My phone’s dead,” Jeremy huffed, “So...still nothing?”

“Looks like it,” Geoff muttered, sounding defeated.

Jeremy sighed. Six months and they still hadn’t found Fitzpatrick. He was somewhere out there and if he was smart, he’d continue staying far away. Jeremy rubbed both hands over his face, fingers rough on the scar tissue. Like sandpaper on sandpaper. He wished the guy hadn’t cut into him so much. Now he scared small children and got stared at a lot. At least his face looked better than his thighs.

“Jer, we’ll find him,” Geoff assured him. 

He ruffled Jeremy’s hair and Jeremy gave him a sad smile.

~

Ryan didn’t let go of Jeremy for nearly an hour. They ate some pizza with Ryan still holding him closely to his chest. He was like that every time he was gone longer than three days. As an hour of holding him neared, Ryan nuzzled into his neck and sighed, body finally relaxing some. 

“Missed you,” He grumbled.

“I missed you too,” Jeremy answered as he pulled Ryan’s hair tie out. 

As anticipated, Geoff, sitting next to him, immediately ran his fingers through Ryan’s hair.

“Guys, I...think we should give up,” Jeremy mumbled.

Two heads snapped to look at him in shock. The expressions quickly changed to annoyance.

“Why?” Ryan demanded.

“Because I’m tired,” Jeremy muttered, sighing, “I want to move on. And I want you to be in town more. I’m tired of us revolving our lives around him. If he comes back, then we’ll kick his ass. Otherwise, I just want to live my life with Romeo and Juliet minus the death part.”

They looked at each other a moment and sighed before turning back to Jeremy.

“Alright,” Ryan agreed, “I’ll only go after him if he’s around here.”

“And I’ll stop trying to track him,” Geoff added.

Jeremy relaxed and leaned towards them to hug them both. 

“Thank you, guys,” he murmured, “I’ll you’ve done for me, I could never repay you.”

“I have some ideas,” Geoff spoke up.

He groped Jeremy’s ass getting a tiny squeak of surprise from him. Jeremy tried to pull back to scowl as Ryan started nibbling at his neck.

“Oh lord, how will I keep up?” He groaned miserably.

“Practice,” Ryan suggested hotly in his ear.

Jeremy went red and rolled his eyes. He was going to die via sex, wasn’t he?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The end has come at last.   
> Now, I should say some things. I was sexually abused in the past. This ending is based on my own story, on the stories of other survivors. A lot of times, a rapist gets away, especially one that’s good at covering their tracks. But it’s still possible to live your life. Whether your assaulter faces justice or not, you can still be okay. I wanted to portray a more real ending that could shed light on stories like mine.  
> I know it’s a bit of a bittersweet ending, but isn’t it fitting for our Romeo and Juliet story? Parting is such sweet sorrow.   
> May your paths stay lit, little stars.~!✨


End file.
